Despite the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on global supply chain, Nigeria’s maritime industry has maintained a growth trajectory across board occasioned by the purposeful leadership of Dr. Bashir Jamoh, reports Francis Ezem.

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency NIMASA, the country’s Maritime Administration has no doubt in the last two years moved the maritime industry from a seeming pariah status among the comity of maritime nations to an enviable level of a force to be reckoned with. This is notwithstanding the outbreak of the deadly corona virus pandemic, which has wreaked havoc not only on the global supply chain but also across the global economy. This unparalleled growth trajectory, which cuts across the core mandates of the agency and beyond, has attracted commendations both globally and at home and has been attributed to the focused leadership style of the current executive management led by Dr. Bashir Jamoh.

Appointed on March 10, 2020 during the outset of the pandemic, Jamoh hit the ground running by putting machinery in place to contain the spread of the virus. Being conscious that he needed the human resource asset to achieve his vision of repositioning the maritime industry, he streamlined the operations of the agency, under which a segment of members of staff worked from home while some critical units and departments were allowed to operate full scale to ensure that the port industry in the country was not shut down, as vessels were allowed to call at the nation’s seaports and inspected under COVID-19 stringent protocols. This was also in line with the declaration of seafarers askey workers.

It also developed other response mechanisms that ensured crew change as well as deploying its robust Corporate Social Responsibility CSR policy through which items were donated to the Federal and State Government authorities charged with the responsibility of coordinating the country’s response to the pandemic. For instance, cash donation of N30million was made to the Federal Government Committee on COVID-19 Intervention, N20million cash donation to the Lagos State COVID-19 Intervention Task Force while it provided human capital/personnel support in terms of medical personnel, drivers logistic officers in addition to the deployment of the agency’s fire service trucks to fumigate Apapa and its environs.

The Jamoh-led management under this initiative also provided logistic support to various agencies and state governments in terms of buses, ambulances, fast intervention marine vessels as well as personal protective equipment. Available records showed that it provided 36-seater buses to Lagos, Abuja and Rivers States, another 16-seater buses to Abuja and Lagos while ambulances were provided to Abuja, Lagos and River State even as two fast intervention marine vessels were provided to Lagos and Onne in River States respectively in an attempt to enhance logistics.

With the containment of the virus and partial lifting of the lockdown, the management sat up for real work, as the agency continued to improve its port and flag state functions which is the core of maritime safety as the country’s performance in this regard in the last four years show

Port State Inspection PSI for a four-year period covering 2017-2020 shows 521 for 2017, which rose to 659 in 2018, representing a growth rate of 38 per cent. There was also a 10per cent further increase in 2019, as it rose from 659 in 2018 to 725 in 2019 but dipped by 29.65per cent to 510 in 2020 obviously due to the pandemic.

A recent statement by the agency reads in part: “Total Port State Inspection in 2019 was 726 vessels of the 5,035 vessel calls which represents 10per cent improvement from the preceding year and 14.42per cent of the of total ship calls. This is however short of 15per cent requirement under International Maritime Organisation IMO by 0.8per cent of which we are working hard to surpass. Total Port State Inspections in 2020 was 510 of 4,728 vessel calls. COVID-19 lockdown impacted negatively on the Port State Inspections.

“In 2019, the agency performed a total of 2,580 Fag State Inspections FSI, representing 2,123 renewal inspections, 276 condition surveys and 181 Random Flag State Surveys. This shows a 49per cent increase from the 1,737 Total Flag State Inspections carried out in 2018 comprising 1,241 Flag State Renewal Inspections, 381 Condition Surveys and 115 Random Flag State Surveys. However, the decrease in 2020 is attributed to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

“Sadly, the agency recorded 22 marine incidents in 2019 and 21 in 2018. Investigations were carried out while some are still on-going. NIMASA has put in tremendous efforts to mitigate the tide of maritime insecurity in Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea through several maritime domain awareness interventions and collaborative efforts”.

The agency has also made serious efforts at fighting the scourge of piracy not only within Nigeria’s territorial waters but also across the Gulf of Guinea region, which led to the enactment of the Suppression of Piracy and other Maritime Offences Act 2019 and the establishment of Integrated National Maritime Surveillance and Security Infrastructure, also called the Deep Blue Project.

Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari had on May 21, 2021 officially launched the Deep Blue Project assets, designed to combat piracy and other maritime crimes. Some of the key assets include two Special Mission Vessels SMVs, 17 Fast Interceptor Boats FIBs, two Unmanned Air Vehicles UAVs, 16 Armoured Vehicles, many of which had been since February been deployed, prior to the launch to the Nigerian Navy for its operational use.

The agency had also within the 24-month period made other giant strides that enhanced safety and security. They include the re-invigoration of the Regional Maritime Awareness Capacity RMAC Centre, upgrading of the RMAC Centre Kirikiri in Apapa by the US Navy to SEA VISION to allow for monitoring of vessels along the West and Central African region. It also established the NIMASA/Industry Working Group, an international collaboration among major international stakeholders in the maritime/shipping sector to entrench coordinated response to piracy and other criminalities on Nigeria’s waters and prompt reportage and escalation of marine incidences to where action is most expected and to provide navigational advisory to mariners. Others include the Maritime Security & Intelligence Unit, which is for intelligence and information gathering and sharing that can help to stop piracy, collaboration with security agencies at the strategic levels that ensure a close liaison with the offices of the National Security Adviser NSA, Chief of Naval Staff, Chief of Air Staff, Chief of Army Staff and the Inspector General of Police. This is in addition to playing a pivotal role in the institutionalisation of the collaboration between her and other government agencies for improved maritime safety and security.

These efforts and collaborations have no doubt, yielded the needed results, as incidences of piracy attacks on ships and kidnapping have reduced drastically. According to recent reports released by the Malaysia-based International Maritime Bureau IMB for the last five years in the Gulf of Guinea, a total of 43 incidents of piracy attacks were recorded in the region in 2017, which further rose to 82 cases in 2018, and further declined significantly in 2019 to 61 cases. It however rose to astronomically to 81 in 2020 but declined drastically again to 34 cases in 2021, which corresponds with the enforcement of the SPOMO Act 2019 under which over 10 piracy suspects were convicted and the deployment of the maritime security assets under the Deep Blue Project.

The IMB also reports that a total of 65 cases of kidnapping for ransom were recorded in the region in 2017, which rose to 78 in 2018, further rose astronomically to 121 and 130 in 2019 and 2020 respective but declined by over 70per cent to 57 cases in 2021.

Other efforts include strict implementation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security ISPS Code, which has steadily improved the level of security at the nation’s seaports and facilities, resuscitation of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System GMDSS equipment, the Regional Maritime Awareness Capacity RMAC Centre as well as international collaborations through which the agency is currently engaging international stakeholders, including BIMCO, INTERTANKO, INTERCARGO, International Chamber of Shipping ICS and Oil Companies International Maritime Forum-OCIMF, under the auspices of NIMASA/Industry Maritime Security Work Group NIWG to entrench coordinated response to piracy attacks. NIMASA has also institutionalised collaboration with national authoritiesincluding other frontline maritime agencies for improved maritime safety, security and efficient port operations.

The agency has recorded huge milestones in the area of human capacity building. This is in addition to the statutory financial contribution to Maritime Academy, Oron.

Available statistics show that under the agency’s Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme NSDP; a human capacity development initiative, over 2,600 Nigerian Seafarers have been trained in various credible maritime institutions in the United Kingdom, United States of America, Egypt, Philippine and Malaysia. Only recently, the agency secured the placement of over 400 cadets onboard ocean going vessels for the mandatory sea time training, leading to the award of Certificate of Competency COC, which makes them globally competitive and employable. This is in addition to sending some of its staffers on long term training abroad to build internal capacities in various aspects of the maritime industry at the prestigious World Maritime University, Malmo, Sweden.

The agency has continued to promote indigenous maritime capacity with the procurement of the fifth largest modular floating dockyard in Africa to reduce the cost of ship repairs and maintenance, which would also check capital flight. This milestone achievement comes under a unique fund; known as the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund CVFF, designed to provide financial assistance to Nigerian ship owners in domestic coastal shipping to acquire vessels and enhance their competitiveness.

Speaking with newsmen on other capacity building initiatives of the agency, Jamoh said: “We are also working towards some fiscal and monetary policy initiatives, as we have continued our engagement with the MDAs to entrench an appropriate fiscal and monetary policy initiative to pave way for the competitive participation of indigenous operators in shipping activities in Nigeria.

“These include but not limited to push for a change in terms of trade from Free On Board FOB to Cost, Insurance and Freight CIF for the affreightment of crude oil, single digit interest rate for the maritime sector, engagement with state governments to buy into our cargo support initiative aimed at creating cargo pool for affreightment by indigenous operators, aggressive repositioning of the Nigerian Ship Registration Office NSRO to enhance Ship Tonnage Growth.

“The Nigerian Ship Registration Office recorded 13.8per cent tonnage growth from 2018 to 2019. This trajectory of growth was negatively impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Nigerian Ship Registry ranks second in tonnage measurement in Africa after Liberia which operates an open and more flexible registry.”

The agency had recently remodeled and commissioned its Knowledge Centre E-Library, which is open to members of staff, students/researchers and external stakeholders/maritime operators to increase the knowledge base of the Nigerian maritime sector.

It was in recognition of these milestone achievement of the Jamoh-led management that global organisations have continued to commend the agency. For instance, the IMO, an organ of the UN saddled with global maritime regulations in December, 2020 applauded NIMASA’s efforts in the fight against piracy in the Gulf of Guinea region. The IMO had earlier supported the agency’s anti-COVID-19 roadmap by declaring seafarers as key workers to facilitate crew changes during the international lockdowns occasioned by the pandemic.

Only recently too, the IMO gave institutional backing to NIMASA’s Marine Litter Action Plan, which among several others, are evidence of the agency’s synergy with the global maritime regulatory body.

Thus untiring management of NIMASA under the watch of Bashir Jamoh is not resting on this superlative performance even in the midst of daunting challenges, as it is still focuses on delivering quality service to the shipping community by strengthen its maritime safety and security enforcement mechanisms.

For the 2022 and beyond, the agency projects to organise a stakeholders’ engagement towards harnessing the potential of the nation’s vase blue economy, which would enhance revenue for increased contribution to the government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund CRF as well as moving the agency’s headquarters to its newly acquired building on Victoria Island, Lagos.

Other areas of focus for the year include the operationalisation of the modular floating dock, establishment of Regional Maritime Safety and Security Training Centre, building a Regional Maritime Search and Rescue clinic, resuscitating the Lokoja office, construction of NIMASA zonal offices (Central and Eastern Zones), among other projections.

It is expected that with these projections, the Jamoh-led management would in the coming months and years not only sustain and surpass this superlative performance but also break new grounds, till then, only time will tell.