New Bill To Convert Shippers’ Council To Nigerian Shipping Commission Underway
. Maritime Sector Expected To Deliver 20 Per cent Of GDP
By Fredrick Wright
A new bill is currently with the National Assembly to empower the Nigeria Shippers Council and change its identity to Nigerian Shipping Commission.
Chairman, House Committee on Shipping Services, Abdussamad Dasuki disclosed this at the at Nigerian Shippers’ Council Special Retreat theme: “Strengthening Economic Regulation of the Marine and Blue Economy,” held in Lagos.
Dasuki said that the Nigerian Shippers Council Act is undergoing a repeal and re-enactment to give the Nigerian Shippers Council the required legal backing and make her the maritime industry economic regulator.
Dasuki, who spoke to journalists on the sidelines of the retreat, said “We are repealing and re-enacting the Shippers Council Act to be the maritime sector regulator, we are currently working on that law.
“Like you all know, at the last Assembly, the law was passed by the two Chambers but then, it didn’t have the accent of the President, but by God’s grace, we have brought it back to the floor and we expect the President to accent to it very soon”
While speaking earlier in his Goodwill message to the Shippers Council management team, Dasuki pledged the commitment of his Committee to be partners in progress with the Council, adding that the committee would do all that is expected to empower the Council as regulator of the maritime sector.
According to him, for the Shippers Council to perform optimally, it needs to transmute from being a “Council” to “Nigerian Shipping Commission”
“On that note, I will highlight to you that even before the new Executive Security resume office, We have championed that all-important law for Shippers Council as a regulatory agency.
“We are going to fast track that law and make sure that you have legal backing to do what is expected of you. We shall have this law by next year 2024.
“There are certain things expected from the Nigerian Shippers Council, one of them is the ICTN, at Parliament, we would take it up, and whatever that is required will be done within the shortest possible time.
“One of our take home here today is that, we should have a Nigerian Shipping Commission and not a Council, this is what will strengthen the agency, you are supposed to be a Commission, you are the regulator of this all-important sector
“The Maritime sector is expected to deliver 20 percent of our GDP but presently, it is doing 1percent or less”
The Executive Secretary of Shippers’ Council, Akutah Pius Ukeyima, said the essence of the 2-days Retreat was to cascade down to the management staff, the recent performance bond that was signed by heads of agencies with the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola.
He said “You will recall that the President held a similar retreat with his ministers where at the end of the day, they signed a performance bond in order to implement his mandate.
“That same retreat was held by the Ministry, a couple of weeks ago, this was to cascade the performance bond that was signed by the Minister down to the Chief Executives of the agencies, including the Nigerian Shippers Council.
“We have signed that performance bond with the Minister, and now, we are cascading it down to the staff of the Shippers Council, beginning with the directors, down to the last person, we want to drive the mandate of Mr President and everyone must be onboard, including the drivers and lower cadre staff”
