| CIS registrar expresses concern over
low patronage of Delta ports by shipowners
By Sun News Publishing
Thursday, April
10, 2008
The Registrar of the Certified Institute of Shipping (CIS),
Dr. Alex Okwuashi has advised the Federal Government to provide
adequate maritime safety and security measures to encourage
ship owners to bring their vessels to Delta Ports.
Okwuashi gave the advice in Warri while speaking at a Maritime
Seminar organised by the institute.
The Registrar who spoke on ``Repositioning of Delta Ports:
the Challenges’’, noted that considering that
current spate of security threats in the Niger Delta area,
port users must be assured of adequate security of human and
material resources to guarantee patronage of the port.
According to him, stakeholders may therefore need to organise
for themselves private security and train officers to comply
and observe the International Ship and Port Facility Security
(ISPS) code.
He further suggested that the Federal Government could fund
the Nigerian Navy to perform the role of the Coast Guards
in collaboration with the Nigerian Maritime Administration
and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
Okwuashi also stated that operators like the NNPC, Agip, Mobil,
Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), National Inland Waterways
Authority (NIWA), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC)
as well as the shipping companies also had social responsibilities
roles to play in making the Delta Ports attractive for patronage.
He described the present state of the Delta ports as regrettable,
adding that the people of the state and the nation in general
were loosing a lot of revenues due to low patronage of the
delta ports.
He also noted that the poor state of activities at the Delta
Ports were caused by political unrests in Warri, tribal feuds
and conflict in the region; lack of security agencies; poor
state of maritime infrastructure; and under-exploitation of
marine resources.
The CIS Registrar also listed other problems like diversion
of cargo meant for the Delta Ports to other ports; and negative
propaganda against the ports.
Okwuashi stressed that the absence of Maritime Domain Awareness
(MDA) was the major bane in opening up the Delta Ports, pointing
out that “MDA is the possession of the effective knowledge
of all activities associated with the global maritime environment
that could impact on security, safety and economy of a nation.
According to him, more than half of maritime practitioners
and stakeholders seldomly know anything about the terrain
they are operating.
He said: “MDA is the answer. It will expose us to the
resources and opportunities of the Delta Ports by ensuring
adequate information flow, making available the hydrographic
charts to aid navigation and use of various channels.
MDA could further be developed to provide Automated Information
System (AIS) in form of Automatic Identification System of
threats arising from piracy, theft, arson and other form of
vandalism of marine oil resources, he said.
He noted that MDA remained one of the strategies which could
be employed to make Delta Ports effective, efficient and highly
patronized.
The Registrar advised that stakeholders within the Niger Delta
ports must form themselves into strong trade group like Delta
Shippers’ Association to make inputs into the policies
formulated for the maritime sector.
Okwuashi also stated that government should improve on poor
infrastructure like roads, lack of railways and lack of good
equipment at the Delta ports.
According to the CIS Registrar, it is common knowledge that
the Delta Ports are closer to the Northern states and even
to Onitsha which is one of the largest markets, but its patronage
has not followed this pattern due to poor infrastructural
development.
“These need to be fixed, if we must make progress as
no ship owner will want to be unduely delayed in the port’’,
Okwuashi said. |
