Ship owners want Nigeria to benefit more from $1 trillion shipping industry
By Eniola Idris
The President, Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN), Dr. MkGeorge Onyung has expressed commitment to steer association to create wealth for members and position Nigeria to benefit more from the $1 trillion global shipping industry.
Speaking after a successful third executive election that saw the renewal his mandate for a second tenure of two years, Onyung said the shipping industry worth about $1 trillion and Nigerian should be seeing benefiting more than what it having currently..
In his acceptance speech Onyung highlighted how some countries are prospering from global shipping, soliciting the support of relevant stakeholders and Government agencies, particularly the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) amongst others.
He singled out Norway, a country with about 45,000 vessels ownership, despite having only four months of free or unfrozen waters annually; that has prospered immensely from global shipping; and vowed that the SOAN under his watch, would engage every relevant stakeholder, Government Agency and international operators, to ensure Nigeria optimises it’s natural environment and endowments.
He however stressed the need for Government to disburse the Cabotage Vessels Financing Fund (CVFF), an ‘Esusu’, collected by Government, from ship operators, solely for the development of indigenous Shipping, noting that despite a consistent Esusu collection made in 18 years, the authorities had actually sat still on it.
“I want to say that the CVFF fund is our money; we (have) contributed (it) for over 18 years, and this money needs to be deployed” he said.
He assured that members would use the CVFF to buy ships and deploy it in the maritime sector.
He also solicited for support from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) urging them to create opportunities for Nigerian Ship owners to lift crude
He also assured that the body would subsequently, reinforce it’s collaboration with the National Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), the Nigerian Customs Service, in a bid to ensure Nigeria positively changes the business narrative or philosophy.
Director-General, NIMASA, Bashir Jamoh, who was represented by Olu Adeniyi urges shipowners to cooperate with govt in it’s policies to turn the industry around.
President, Nigerian Association of Master Mariners, Tajudeen Alao, urged SOAN to continues to be united and improve local capacity in shipping.
Former Director-General, Chambers of Shipping, Mrs Ify Akerele urged SOAN not to relent in it’s effort to create a robust maritime sector, calling for collaboration with other groups in other to achieve a common goal.
Onyung was elected unopposed; and the new executive members include Eno Williams as 1st Vice President; Sunny Eja, Second Vice President; Iroghama Ogbeifun, Luis Ekere and Babalola Adefarati.
