Nigeria’s leader, President Muhammadu Buhari

The Federal Government of Nigeria has officially notified the International Maritime Organisation IMO of the anti-trade practice by multinational shipping lines operating in the country, who deliberately leave their empty containers in the country, thus causing gridlocks on most port access roads.

Minister of State for Transport, Senator Gbemi Saraki, while speaking at a recent stakeholders’ workshop organised by the ministry in Port Harcourt on the efforts of the government to stimulate activities and patronage of the eastern ports, disclosed that government has notified the IMO General Assembly of the deliberate piling of empty containers by foreign liners.

This, practice, which she observed, was injurious to the nation’s shipping industry in particular and the economy in general as it inhibits free flow of inbound and outbound cargo with the attendant gridlocks, would not be allowed to continue ad infinitum, as the government might be forced to invoke severe sanctions.

She said the shipping lines should evolve modern and internationally acceptable ways of handling their empty boxes, including establishing holding bays as against the current practice of leaving them on the streets and roads, thus impeding free flow of traffic in and out of the nation’s seaports.

While warning that the practice of allowing empty containers to lie fallow in the country with the attendant hitches to smooth and efficient port operations was no longer acceptable as the government would be left with no other option than to adopt measures to get culprits punished, including heavy fines and sanctions.

The Minister said: “At this point, I would like to address one other issue, which is ensuring that we have a harmonious working relationship with stakeholders and end users of port services and customers in the shipping industry.

“But recently, when I had to address the General Assembly of the IMO, I shared with them, Nigeria’s concerns about some heinous attitudes and practices of some shipping companies, especially as regards empty containers. This is a major concern and worry for us as a country and in the increasing wave of empty containers currently stored in the country as a result of the Apapa gridlock.

“The Federal Ministry of Transport urgently requires the shipping lines to evolve efficient and effective strategies for the fastest evacuation of their empty containers lying fallow in the country, I am happy that the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council is here. The shipping companies should also make holding bays easy and accessible to their customers to drop off empty containers, failure to do this would mean that the Federal Government would initiate a policy to cap the detention collection from late empty drop offs.

“The Ministry would continue to monitor the situation of empty containers and would not hesitate to take disciplinary actions against non-compliance, so much so that we may also impose fines on empty containers lying in the country for a specific number of days”.