Shippers’ Council, CBN block foreign shipping N2bn demurrage surcharge on importers

Abiola Seun

The Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) yesterday claimed its collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has helped Nigerian Importers saved N2billion demmurrage charges from foreign shipping companies.
This was disclosed by the executive secretary of the council, Barr. Hassan Bello at the ongoing Sub-regional Summit on Unfair Shipping Surcharges and High Local Shipping Charges at the Ports of West and Central Africa Sub-region held in Abuja.

According to the Shippers’ Council’s boss, about N2billion has been saved through the confirmation of reasonableness of demurage and freight rates by the CBN.

He said, “in order to reduce capital flight, the CBN sought for the assistance of shippers’ council as economic regulator to confirm reasonableness of freight rate and determine reasonableness of demurage and about N2billion has been saved through the confirmation of the reasonableness of demurrage. We thank CBN for the collaboration.”
Bello who said the Council had collapsed shipping charges from 18 to five informed the summit that the aim of the council is to reduce the local shipping charges by 35 percent.
He further decried multiples surcharges levied on cargoes destined to West and Central Africa countries by international shipping companies due to some ugly situations in the region, but which remain even after the situation has been arrested.

He said, “Some of the identified surcharges have been prevalent in the sub-region under various nomenclatures such as the Peak Season Surcharge and War Risk Surcharge to mention a few.
“According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), surcharges are supposed to be temporary measure by shipping lines involved in the shipment of goods worldwide to address peculiar challenges of shipping at destination and are subject to removal when the situation normalizes. Regrettably, some of these charges have assumed a permanence without justification or basis for negotiation.
According to the shippers council boss, for the past one or two years, the NSC has actively engaged the foreign shipping lines in Nigeria in a comprehensive negotiation on local shipping charges.
“The kernel of these negotiations are based on these points; to establish a sustainable mechanism for further tariff negotiations; to collapse the myriad of charges to a manageable standard nomenclature, the charges have been collapsed from 18 to five; all charges must be justified and tied to measurable services; and no review of charges will be made without negotiation with NSC,” he said.

“In conclusion, it is important to state that in the long run, arbitrary and unilateral increase in charges would not benefit operations or general procedures in our countries. A chaotic, unbridled situation of sporadic sometimes astronomical pricing regime is adverse to the development of shipping. It is a lose-lose situation.”

“Transport should be scientifically, fairly and appropriately priced with the aim of providing balance and equilibrium. A fair and level playing field for all parties,” he said.

He also charged other member nations of Union of Africa Shippers’ Council (UASC) to collaborate to end the capital flight through illegal surcharges.

“The UASC member states must collaborate to remove unfriendly policies or circumstances that provides the opportunities for arbitrary increase of surcharges and local shipping charges.”