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Steve Agbota
Due to the inability of indigenous shipping companies to convey Nigerian-generated cargo through the nation’s coastal waters, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), has mapped out plans to end cabotage waivers for foreign ship owners within the next five years.
The suspension of the waivers, which would be stopped in phases would allow indigenous shipowners to take charge of Nigerian Cabotage trade.
The Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act 2003, which came into force in 2004, aims primarily to reserve the commercial transportation of goods and services within Nigerian coastal and inland waters to vessels flying the Nigerian flag, owned, crewed and built by Nigerian citizens in Nigeria.
Speaking at a stakeholders consultative meeting for cessation of cabotage waivers in Lagos recently, the Director General of NIMASA, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, said the agency was determined to bring to an end the waivers regime, to allow cabotage flourish in Nigeria.
“Today is a very special day. For a very long time, indigenous operators have been very concerned about cabotage waivers, their concerns coming from the fact that it appears that waivers are now a norm instead of exception and they have been wondering when we are going to come to the end of this cabotage waivers regime.
“I want to say to them that NIMASA has put an end to your cry. NIMASA is on the same page with you. We are determined to bring an end to the waivers regime so that cabotage will flourish in Nigeria and Nigerians will benefit from coastal trade.”
Dakuku further disclosed that the agency has taken preliminary steps to give Nigerian operators a strong footing in the cabotage regime. He explained: “Some time in 2017, we published marine notice of the new cabotage compliance strategy and in that marine notice, we informed operators that we shall no longer entertain any form of application for manning waivers save for captains and chief engineers.
“At the time, it was for six months. It was a trial run and we noticed that on six months we literally doubled the number of Nigerians onboard vessels by simply publishing and enforcing the new cabotage compliance strategy. Also in 2018, we decided to extend it. After then, we have had series of engagement with stakeholders to stop the waivers regime in the cabotage trade. Today is an important step in that direction.”
He noted that it is the desire of every operator that there will be an end of the regime of waivers in the cabotage trade, saying that a lot of people in the country are concerned that Nigeria has not been able to build vessels in the country.
He added that a number of Nigerians are onboard vessels in the area of manning, which has recorded an improvement in terms of flagging. According to him, at NIMASA, strategic steps have been taken in the area of ship building, as the country is looking at Ajaokuta steel mill again. “I believe that once Ajaokuta comes on stream, it will remarkably improve our fold in ship building.”
