Patronage of Eastern and Delta Ports may not materialise any time soon until obstacles on the path to making them attractive are addressed.
Rather than embarking on “knee jerk reactions” as has been the case since the access roads to Lagos ports completely failed, the federal government should seek the input of experts to evaluate the various options towards turning around the waning fortunes of ports in other parts of the country.
Given the peculiar nature of shipping services where the shipper dictates the Port of destination for cargoes, government cannot unilaterally divert ships from the preferred destination of shippers, Mr. Lucky Amiwero, president of the National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agent, said in an interview.
“The path to resolving this serious challenge is for a panel of experts in maritime to be set to look at the options for driving shipping traffic to those ports. They have peculiar challenges which will require medium term planning to address,” Amiwero stated.
One of the major challenges, according to him, is the disproportionate location of manufacturing companies outside the south south and south east zones. “Apart from oil and gas and related concerns, mot manufacturing companies are located outside those areas. Of course that also affects the strength of the immediate market,” he said.
But of greater significance are the physical and structural barriers to optimum ship and cargo traffic to the ports. “All Nigerian ports are estuary ports that require constant maintenance dredging to sustain their advertised draft and dredging is a very capital intensive venture. It will require a lot of resources to keep all the channels navigable all year round.
“That is why government must adopt a scientific approach in addressing this problem. The views of experts must be solicited. I prefer a situation where experts are assembled and given the mandate to study the entire port structure in Nigeria and recommend how every port can be utilised optimally. It involve the designation of some ports into special facilities for handling some special cargoes. It is not about relying on civil servants who will not offer any fresh ideas,” Amiwero said
“The path to resolving this serious challenge is for a panel of experts in maritime to be set to look at the options for driving shipping traffic to those ports. They have peculiar challenges which will require medium term planning to address,” Amiwero stated.
One of the major challenges, according to him, is the disproportionate location of manufacturing companies outside the south south and south east zones. “Apart from oil and gas and related concerns, mot manufacturing companies are located outside those areas. Of course that also affects the strength of the immediate market,” he said.
But of greater significance are the physical and structural barriers to optimum ship and cargo traffic to the ports. “All Nigerian ports are estuary ports that require constant maintenance dredging to sustain their advertised draft and dredging is a very capital intensive venture. It will require a lot of resources to keep all the channels navigable all year round.
“That is why government must adopt a scientific approach in addressing this problem. The views of experts must be solicited. I prefer a situation where experts are assembled and given the mandate to study the entire port structure in Nigeria and recommend how every port can be utilised optimally. It involve the designation of some ports into special facilities for handling some special cargoes. It is not about relying on civil servants who will not offer any fresh ideas,” Amiwero said
