The International Maritime Institute of Nigeria (IMION) has urged the Federal Government to move decisively beyond the mere ratification of maritime treaties to the rigorous operational execution of these treaties across the country’s ports, maritime domain, and inland waterways.

The Director-General of IMION, Rear Admiral Thaddeus Udofia (rtd), stressed that the absolute metric of Nigeria’s success does not rest on signed treaties but lives in the active security, digital optimisation, and regulatory discipline cultivated daily across its ports and logistics corridors.

“Transitioning from paper blueprints to practical execution is where maritime excellence is born,” he stated.

Udofia made the call while responding to the theme of the 2026 International Maritime Organisation (IMO) World Maritime Day, “From Policy to Practice: Powering Maritime Excellence.”

He emphasised that high-level regulatory frameworks could only deliver economic benefits when translated into specialised frontline human capacity.

He said IMION’s initiatives directly address the gap between domestic policy objectives and the practical skills required by frontline maritime workers.

Udofia disclosed that IMION had established strategic learning pathways and technical knowledge-sharing networks with international maritime institutes, academic partners and global strategic partners to institutionalise global best practices.

The IMION boss said the institution has developed a stakeholder-backed five-year port transformation plan to revolutionise port logistics, optimise trade corridors, reduce transaction costs and eliminate supply chain bottlenecks.

Udofia noted that IMION had also advocated fisheries and scientific reforms, unveiling a data-driven, five-pillar plan to revive Nigeria’s fisheries sector.

He said the plan involved collaboration on scientific fish stock assessments, modern coastal lagoon cage culture, and satellite-based spatial planning to improve national food security.

On advanced intelligence training, Udofia said the institute is conducting specialised workshops focused on maritime security and global trade by deploying practical solutions to counter risks and protect critical trade infrastructure across the Gulf of Guinea.

He added that the institute had aligned its professional courses with the latest revisions to the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) Convention to prepare the next generation of Nigerian seafarers for automation, green shipping technologies and a decarbonised maritime industry.

Udofia said IMION remained unyielding in its mission to fuel the empirical research, data stream and technical mastery required to convert executive mandates into triumphant maritime realities, while solidifying Nigeria’s status as the maritime hub of the Gulf of Guinea.