.Oyetola urges private sector partnership to revamp maritime industry

The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, has said the rehabilitation of the dilapidated ports infrastructure across the country would gulp about $1 billion.

Oyetola stated this at a maritime interactive session held during the 29th Nigerian Economic Summit by the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning in Abuja.

The Maritime session with the theme: “Sailing to Success: Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Potential,” was organised to seek solutions to the challenges hampering the growth and desired development of the sector, which has been touted to be the mainstay of the economy.

The Minister said one of the problems in the country is lack of maintenance culture for infrastructure, adding that the Federal Government is trying to rehabilitate all the ports in the country, which will cost $1billion, warning that if it fails to do that, the ports will collapse.

Oyetola who sought to revamp the fortune of the sector, called on private sector operators to work with the government to actualise the potentials of the sector.

The minister said he intends to run the sector with private investors and public/private partnership. Speaking on achieving efficiency in the port sector and engendering real time cargo clearance, Oyetola said the ministry would work towards getting the endorsement of President Bola Tinubu to ensure compulsory use of scanning machines at the ports.

Oyetola said that the use of scanners should be imperative in the ports even as he wondered how all containers would go through the 100 per cent physical examination process.

“The use of scanners is imperative and the Customs Controller General has to buy into what we are saying. Attitudinal problems are what we have because even if we have 10 scanners and the boys refuse to do the right thing, we are wasting our time. We have to get the endorsement of the president for scanners to be used at the ports,” he stated.

The minister further called on stakeholders to come up with policies and innovative ideas that can facilitate growth of the sector and make it the best regionally and internationally. Oyetola assured that he would find solutions to some of the problems affecting the growth of the maritime sector.

“I am willing to work with all stakeholders to make the maritime industry a better place for all of us. In any case, the expectation from the Marine and Blue Economy is so high that we talk of trillions and no longer billions and everybody is looking at us as the Central Bank of Nigeria.”

“We need to work together to actualise the potentials in the sector. The only thing we have not done is that we have not taken time to harness the potential. All the problems that militate against the industry are what we are looking at now. I want you to know that we are working so hard to put the policy framework together,” he said.

Oyetola disclosed that the ministry would be launching the roadmap with some of these challenges and solutions incorporated in it. He said while the ministry understands the critical role maritime plays in an economy, it is imperative that stakeholders quickly move towards improving the navigability of the waters and build the draughts of the ports.

Oyetola also added that cargo clearance processes must be improved to between 24-48 hours as well as ensure adequate connectivity from port to hinterland and efficient road network.

Speaking on the ‘Role of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) in Eliminating Constraints to Port Operations’, the Managing Director, NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko, identified factors constraining optimal performance of the ports to include, increased automation, reconstruction of aged port infrastructure, renewal of equipment, increased collaboration with the Nigerian Customs Service and other agencies to eradicate duplicity of functions, among others.

He said the deployment of the Port Community System (PCS) as a precursor to the implementation of a National Single Window remains the most veritable path to sustainable economic transformation.

Speaking earlier, the Thematic Lead, Ports and Inland Waterways, Infrastructure Policy Commission, Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), Ronke Kosoko, said the maritime sector had suffered neglect in terms of bad roads, port congestion, among other eels.

She charged all private and public sector participants to bear the burden and not leave it alone for the government so that the maritime industry can get a respite and harness the potentials to contribute substantially to the $1 trillion economy the president projects.