Executive Secretary/CEO, Nigerian Shippers Council, Barr. Pius Akutah (6th from right), leader of the delegation and official of the Ghana Shippers Authority, Helena Claudia Amanfu (5th from left) and officials of both agencies during the visit.

The Nigerian Shippers’ Council NSC and its Ghanaian counterpart, the Ghana Shippers’ Authority GSA have commenced work on a collaborative study on regulatory framework and related costs and charges for seaports in the West African sub-region.

This is sequel to a recent visit by a top executive of the GSA, Helena Claudia Amanfu to commence talks with the management of the Nigerian Shippers Council.

According to her, the visit to the NSC was part of a regional study embarked upon by the GSA since 2018, which aims to cover other West African countries including Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, Senegal and Nigeria.

It was gathered that among the team is a member of the Ghanaian Parliament, Hon. Emmanuel Akwasi Gyanfi, which was on a mission to understudy how port-related charges impact on the clearing process among the listed West African countries.

“We’re here to understudy Nigeria’s experience at a time the Shippers Council is reviewing its Act to fully become a Port Economic Regulator. The purpose of the visit to the NSC is to discuss port structure, cost and fees in the West African sub region.

“In 2018, we undertook a similar study in Côte d’Ivoire and then Togo and based on that, we sought to extend it to Senegal and then Nigeria. “To update the structure that we have, in 2024, we decided to undertake the study once again. So we are here to do that- cost analysis in the seaports.

“As the Nigerian Shippers’ Council is reviewing its Act to be a full Economic Regulator, so we intend to do same. We have started the process back home and we came to look at the challenges and the best practices that we can also incorporate in our process at home”, Amanfu said.

Meanwhile, Executive Secretary/CEO of the Council, Barr. Pius Akutah,who spoke during the meeting, said the visit remains crucial, considering the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, which targets the creation of a borderless trading market within the continent.

Akutah pledged the Council’s readiness to support in providing necessary statistics for the success of the project.

“I understand that this study is very crucial, particularly now that we have in the African continent trade area agreement. We have come together under that agreement to form a borderless market so we need to harmonize what is happening within our ports to make them competitive across all and see how we can promote trade even amongst ourselves before we can go to the western world.

“This visit to me, is very important in terms of our partnership as brothers within the same sub-region. I also understand that you have been to Lekki Seaport to see things for yourselves and take some of the statistics that will help you in this study.

“We will continue to support you for the remaining time you are here. Whatever you want, we will provide the statistics that are available to us because whatever comes out as a result of this project will also be beneficial to us because of the partnership we have formed under this agreement”, the NSC-boss pledged.

On the ongoing review of the Shippers Council’s Act, he noted that the review was informed by the need to ensure fairness, promote trade and protect the interests of shippers and other stakeholders in the new regulatory framework.

Akutah said: “Of course, there is no perfect law but you know you have to start from somewhere and that’s what we’re trying to do. There are some concerns that have been raised, which we are looking at to see how we can harmonise such concerns and come up with a law.

“This regulatory regime will foster access to port services and will promote efficiency. So we are pushing for it to see how that can create a force to move on to take advantage of what is in the African continent.

“We cannot have that and open our markets to the rest of the world without reflecting on what is happening in the ports. It will be very unattractive and it will not help us to achieve the overall targets that we are pushing for”.

The NSC-boss observed that it was important that a member of the Ghana Parliament was part of the delegation, which would help him to oversee the proposed amendment.