NIMASA, waking up from slumber?

Tayo Oladipupo |

After about ten years that the Cabotage Act was established by the government to help indigenous growth of shipping and maritime business, the body saddled with its implementation, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has said it would commence strict adherence to the Act.

Recall that in 2007, the Act was inaugurated to help indigenous players participate in carriage of Nigerian products but the reverse has been the case as foreign ships have dominated the Nigerian waters.

Several excuses have been given to that effect that local vessel owners do not have the required standard of vessels that can lift Nigerian crude so much that most of the Nigerian ship owners have gone out of business or grossly indebted and have gone out of business.

But in a recent press release by the agency, the DG, Dr. Dakuku Peterside told oil sector operators that the agency would no longer encourage the application of any form of waivers under the Cabotage Act.

According to Peterside, the waivers regime does not help the growth of the Nigerian maritime sector and the economy at large.

The apex maritime boss said this during a meeting with the Oil Producers Trade Sector (OPTS) in Lagos, adding that NIMASA was on the verge of ending such waivers.

He urged industry players to draw up a five-year strategic plan for the cessation of application for Cabotage waiver and also pursue the utilization of Nigerian-owned vessels for marine contracts.

According to him, “Our laws forbid foreign vessels operating in our territorial waters save for compliance with the Cabotage Act. We also want to increase the number of Nigerians who participate in the marine aspect of your business and we are working closely with the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to have a joint categorization of vessels operating under the Cabotage Act in order to ensure the full implementation of the Act.”

Dakuku urged the international oil companies (IOCs) to support NIMASA’s bid to ensure full implementation of the Act, adding that it would equally be of more benefit to the investors in the sector as it will be cost effective for them to engage Nigerians.

Commenting on the previous resolutions with the OPTS, Dakuku stated that there was need for the trade section of the oil producers to fulfil their own part of the agreement. He said NIMASA will not compromise the growth of the maritime sector, especially when it comes to the issue of enforcing statutory regulations enshrined in the Agency’s empowering instruments.

Dr. Dakuku further stated that in NIMASA’s bid to grow the industry, it would not hesitate to wield its powers where necessary, adding that the agency’s mandate is strictly regulatory. But he also noted that NIMASA preferred the method of engaging key players in the industry for symbiotic benefits.

“We don’t want to change our rules of engagement to a confrontational one because the mandate we have is that of the Nigerian people, to grow shipping for our economic benefits. In this wise, we urge you to cooperate and collaborate with us where necessary so that we can have an all-inclusive maritime sector,” the Director-General stated.

Dakuku said the Agency was taking necessary steps to ensure that there were no gaps in the sector, especially as it concerns needed human capacity. He said the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP), which is an interventionist programme of the Agency, was making serious headway in creating sea time for the over 2,000 graduates of the programme.

In his own remarks, the Executive Director of OPTS, which comprises major oil companies, Bunmi Toyobo, said the trade section was ready to comply with all directives of NIMASA. He said the information required by the Agency to build and harmonise its data for better regulation of the sector will be provided by OPTS.

The meeting, which was attended by OPTS, had managing directors and representatives of major oil firms, including Total, Exxon Mobil, Shell, Agip amongst others.

Meanwhile, NIMASA has not been able to play its role in boosting maritime manpower to run the regime. Over 4000 Nigerian youths who graduated from various maritime training institutions across the globe including Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron have not been able to get mandatory seatime experience.

The seatime experience which is an industry requirement to work on board ships entails a trained officer or engineer having a one year practical onboard vessels.

Recently some of the more than 1500 cadets of NIMASA sponsored National Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) protested at the agency’s office in Warri and Headquarters in Lagos over unfulfilled promises of seatime from NIMASA 3 years after graduation.

It is widely believed that any plan to enforce cabotage in the maritime industry without having the manpower to drive the regime and displace foreign professionals through competence, is a roadmap to nowhere.

NIMASA should as a matter of urgency wake up from its slumber, take the bull by the horns so that its dream could come to fulfilment and for once make Nigeria a force to reckon with in the comity of maritime nations.