Nigeria’s inability to emerge as a major cargo hub in West Africa is largely due to the weak economies of neighbouring countries, the Managing Director of Mainstream Cargo, Seyi Adewale, has said.

Speaking in an interview with The Guardian in Lagos, yesterday, on the challenges affecting cargo movement and logistics operations in West Africa, Adewale regretted that most West African countries lacked the production capacity, trade volume and industrial strength required to support a vibrant regional cargo network.

According to him, countries surrounding Nigeria do not generate sufficient trade activities to sustain profitable cargo distribution and airline operations in the region.

Using countries such as Senegal, The Gambia and Benin as examples, he questioned their level of production and export capacity, stressing that there was limited exchange of goods within the region.

“Our neighbouring countries are small. The trade and business really revolve around here (Nigeria). We have weak countries surrounding us. It is not really profitable and efficient because who are we supplying, who are we distributing to?” he asked.

Adewale compared and juxtaposed West Africa with Southern and Northern Africa, where, he argued, stronger economies and better trade activities support regional logistics and cargo operations.

According to him, countries such as South Africa, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia have stronger trade, production and tourism sectors that encourage cargo connectivity.

He noted that the only period Nigeria experienced significant cargo and passenger movement within West Africa was during the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) operations in the 1990s.

Also, on infrastructure challenges affecting cargo movement in Nigeria, Adewale identified information and communication technology (ICT) downtime within customs clearing systems as a major problem.

According to him, disruptions on platforms such as B’Odogwu and customs clearing systems in airports and seaports increase cargo clearance costs and place pressure on importers and clearing agents.

He explained that the cargo agents or importers are given a seven-day demurrage-free period to clear goods, but maintained that any downtime on customs ICT infrastructure directly affects shipment clearance and increases costs.

“We have just seven days to clear any goods for any client – demurrage-free days and if, for any reason, there is downtime or there are issues regarding customs ICT infrastructure in clearing, it directly affects the shipment.

“Not only that, it causes a strain between the importer and the clearing agents.”
Adewale further raised concerns over sudden increases in charges by aviation agencies, including the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (NCAA), as some of the infrastructure challenges facing the cargo business.

He also mentioned deficiencies in cold-chain infrastructure, questioning whether cargo handling companies consistently maintain and verify temperatures for sensitive cargo.

Adewale said seamless ICT communication between cargo handlers such as Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) and Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO), airlines, customs and regulatory agencies, including National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), was important to efficient cargo operations.

He also identified poor warehouse management, cargo tracking difficulties, leaking terminal roofs and inefficient cargo location systems as additional challenges affecting the sector.

Also, he expressed scepticism that the existing cargo terminals operated by FAAN and privately managed terminals such as Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL) would be sufficient to support future growth.

He canvassed innovation, efficient space management and continuous upgrade of screening equipment to prevent congestion and improve service delivery.