Vincent Toritseju
Lagos — Maritime stakeholders have said the Nigerian Maritime industry has capacity to generate N7 trillion annually, noting that the industry losses over a $1 trillion to foreign players in the local shipping industry due to the non-disbursement of the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund, CVFF.
In his presentation at the maiden interactive session with maritime stakeholders in Lagos yesterday, maritime lawyer, Emeka Akabogu said that one of the principal mandates of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA is to develop and implement policies and programmes that will facilitate growth of local shipping capacities.
Akabogu also said that the industry can also adequately contribute its quota to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP, adding that the maritime sector is potentially the largest economic sector outside of oil and gas.
He disclosed that Nigeria’s untapped blue economy potential is valued at $296 billion as the sector can also generate 2 million jobs over 5 years.
He said: “Over the course of the last five years or so, the subject of “the blue economy” has become very popular in Nigeria, and severally adumbrated at diverse fora. This must have played a part in the decision of President Tinubu to create the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, a major milestone seen as the culmination of years of advocacy in the industry, and welcomed by many. However, we must now go beyond the euphoria of the emergent semantics to interrogating the substance and charting an effective course for Maritime Nigeria.
‘The blue economy incorporates everything we know and have been dealing with about the traditional maritime economy, in addition to the entirety of value accruable from all water-bodies.
“Nigeria’s establishment of a Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy is a strategic move. The maritime sector is potentially the largest economic sector outside of oil and gas. It is estimated that Nigeria’s untapped blue economy potential is valued at $296 billion (NIMASA, The Africa Blue Economy Alliance (ABEA)). Experts also estimate that our maritime sector can generate N7 trillion annually and two million jobs over 5 years.
“This is largely because of our vast marine assets of the longest coastline in West Africa, stretching over 892 Km from Badagry to Bakassi, with a total shelf area of about 42,000 km2 (UNEP, 2014). Our territorial sea extends from the coastline to a breadth of 12 nautical miles, the continental shelf extends about 50 miles making us one of the 8 countries with a continental shelf that allows for the extension of our EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone) from 200 miles to a further 150 miles.
“These are in addition to our nearly 4,000 Km of inland waterways. This vast expanse, teeming with life, is a treasure trove of resources – from off-shore economic activities such as fishing, salvage, towage, and underwater resources such as bountiful fisheries, rich oil and gas reserves, to on-shore economic activities such as port activities, maritime transport, ship construction, repairs, and maintenance activities.
Akabogu explained that stakeholders were of great expectations from both NIMASA and the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy noting that it is only these expectations will take the industry to the promised land.
He stated: “Expectations of the General Public: The citizenry is looking up to the Marine and Blue economy sector to be efficient in solving their daily problems, to create job opportunities that will bring gainful employment, and to create wealth and better the fortunes of the common man.
“In the context of our discussions here, this will be through those activities in the maritime value chain relevant to NIMASA that optimise efficiency, quick turn-around, safety, security and cost savings.
“Players in the industry also have expectations from NIMASA per its regulatory mandates, which are broadly two namely maritime administration, and (shipping development and promotion.
“The industry wants to see that affairs of the sector are effectively managed to ensure safe and clean waters, security, organization and to facilitate business in the industry. They want vessels regularly boarded and inspected with breaches identified and sanctioned, licenses readily issued upon satisfaction of requirements, pollution response timely with adequate availability of response equipment, maritime labour easily registered and deployed, international conventions dutifully reviewed, understood, argued on our terms, ratified and domesticated; wreck cleared; they want a ship register that is credible, accessible and efficient, and so much more.
“In terms of shipping development and promotion, what the industry wants here is straightforward, they wants to purchase and operate ships with ease, have them employed and active, have cargo readily available for the ships; have market data and information readily available on their screens on the tap of a button, they want access to finance that is transparent, credible and reliable; they want legitimate vessel operations not to be clogged by inexplicable rejection of classification regimes already approved by government, they want shipyards that are functional so they don’t go outside our shores for reliable dry-docking, and so much more; they want a system of cabotage waivers or licenses that is transparent and all-inclusive, they want CVFF and many more.
“Taken together, these constitute the promised land upon which voyage MV Maritime Nigeria has been set on course.”