Yemisi Izuora
The Ship-owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN) has renewed its protest against continued grant of waivers to foreign shipping operators by government.
The association said the practice is aiding the foreign operators to continue to dominate coastal shipping business in the country, thus making it impossible for indigenous operators to survive and assist in creating employment opportunities for the citizens.
SOAN President, Engr Greg Ogbeifun, who conveyed the displeasure in Lagos during a media briefing to herald the association’s special workshop and annual general meeting (AGM) scheduled for December, said the country must optimally harvest her maritime endowments especially in the area of creating employment opportunities for the youths.
Ogbeifun while urging the Federal Government to pay special attention to shipping development, condemned the arbitrary increase in charges by shipping companies without recourse to regulatory authorities.
He lamented the lack of protection of indigenous ship owners by concerned government agencies. The agencies which their actions encourage the continued dominance of foreign operators even in local shipping operations, he said, include Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), NAPIMS and the Nigerian (local) Content Board.
He commended the Federal Government and the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, for recently demonstrating what he said is “readiness to break the jinx of disbursing the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) which is derived from fees paid by shippers doing business in Nigeria”
On the modalities for the disbursement the fund, SOAN urged the government to utilize the template already provided by the primary lending institutions (PLI) and commence the disbursement to shipping companies who have met the prescribed requirements.
Speaking on the SOAN’s end-of-the year workshop, titled “Giving Critical Life-line to the Nigerian Maritime Industry”, Ogbeifun noted that the event would provide a unique opportunity for participants to discuss financing and other specific ways of improving the maritime sector, in order to tap its latent opportunities for employment generation and the country’s economic growth.