Abuja seeks partnership with Beijing, Washington on maritime opportunities

For an improved economic tie, Nigeria has sought full collaboration of the United States and Chinese government towards unlocking the maritime opportunities in the country.

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) during a visit of the Consul General of the United States and Acting Chinese Consul General in Lagos urged the duo countries to extend the business relationship to the maritime sector to aid to the growth of the African economy.

The Director General of the Agency, Dakuku Peterside, yesterday called on the United States Government to partner the agency in the area of capacity building and China in the areas of ship breaking and recycling, on-board training for cadets as well as technical support.

Peterside, who acknowledged the long standing relationship between the two countries and other existing bilateral agreements, said that the Nigerian government will surely need the assistance of the United States government in the area of technology driven security surveillance as well as human capacity building.

He said that the business of shipping is global and having done so well for themselves in this area, Nigeria can benefit from the experiences of the Americans in order to harness the potentials in the nation’s maritime domain.

“The need for sharing ideas cannot be overstated, because shipping is a global business that links economies of the world together and Nigeria can learn from the experience of the United States. We are currently repositioning the maritime industry and our dream is to be the hub of maritime activities in Africa,” he said.

The NIMASA helmsman also used the opportunity to appeal to the United States representative to assist in the area of training and recruiting of the Nigeria Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) cadets to the USA marine Navy in order to enhance their competency and skills.

The U.S., Consul General, John Bray, disclosed that they are interested in the status of the co-operation between the two countries and also opportunities available in collaborating together.