From left: Head, Public Relations, SIFAX Group, Muyiwa Akande, Deputy Director, Special Duties, Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Zuberu Mustapha, who represented the ES/CEO, Barr. Pius Akuta, CEO, Centre for Public and Private Enterprise CPPE, Dr. Muda Yusuf and the Publisher, Shipping World Magazine, Elder Asu Beks at the one-day Seminar for Maritime Journalists held in Lagos, Wednesday.

The Nigerian Shippers’ Council has assured maritime and shipping stakeholders that it has the capabilities both in terms of structure and the human capital to deliver on its Port Economic Regulatory functions. This assurance is coming on the hills of the expected passage of the new the Nigerian Shipping and Port Economic Regulatory Agency Bill 2023, which is currently at the final stage of enactment at the National Assembly.

Speaking at the 2024 edition of the Maritime Media Seminar held in Lagos, Wednesday, with the theme: “The Nigerian Shippers’ Council in Transition, Issues, Prospects and Challenges”, Executive Secretary/CEO of the Council, Barr. Pius Ukeyima Akutah said that the Council has everything it takes to provide effective Port Economic Regulations for the country’s ever-growing maritime and shipping industry.

Represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties, Mustapha Zubaru, the Executive Secretary noted that the Council has effectively performed these functions in the last few years, adding that the essence of the new bill at the National Assembly when passed into law is to give the Council a legal backing in performing these regulatory functions.

“There is no doubt that the Council has all it takes to effectively provide port economic regulatory services for the maritime and shipping industry in Nigeria. The Council has done also done this effectively done carried out these functions for over a decade when it was designated to do that by the government.

“The essence of the new bill is to give a legal backing to the Council in providing these regulatory functions. As soon as the bill is passed, all the Council do is to strengthen its structures, which are already there to enable us deliver on these functions even more effectively.

Barr. Akutah, who also fielded questions from newsmen, also gave an insight into the circumstances that led to the formation of Shippers Councils across the globe, especially developing nations, which was as a result of the fragmentation of shippers’ (importers and exporters), who lacked a voice in the determination of shipping freights and other issues that affected them.

This is against the position of the shipping lines, who had formed a strong cartel and had the ability to fix all rates and insurance premiums and other terms of cargo shipment, most of were skewed against the cargo owners, the shippers, a development that prompted the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development UNCTAD to lead the advocacy for the formation of Shippers Councils to protect the interest of shippers with a view to deriving maximum benefits from international trade and commerce.

“Since the establishment of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council in 1978, it has evolved from just protecting shippers’ interests to building Inland Dry Ports IDP across the country in partnership with private investors, which dovetailed into being appointed economic regulator of the port industry in the country.

“By virtue of its appointment as economic regulator of ports, the Council is expected to create an effective regulatory framework for the control of tariffs, rates, charges and other related economic services at the ports. It is also to in addition to its statutory functions monitor the implementation of the commercial components of the lease agreements between the Federal Government of Nigeria and the private terminal operators and service providers.

“Specifically, the Council is required to provide guidelines on setting and modification of tariffs, rates and charges for service providers in the nation’s seaports; monitor the tariffs and charges of all the port service providers to prevent arbitrariness, and ensure conformity to industry best practices.

“It is also to monitor to ensure that the cost burden arising from poor services by the operators are not passed to the consumers and enforce standard of service delivery to ensure the availability, affordability, accessibility, stability, predictability and adequacy of service, among other functions.

“So as soon as the Council transits fully to Port Economic Regulator, which will be by virtue of the passage of the Port Economic Regulatory Agency Bill, what we need to do is to restructure and strengthen the various existing departments because the structure is already there”, the NSC-boss asserted.

Meanwhile, CEO, Mediacom, publishers of Shipping Position and facilitators of the event, Sesan Onilemo, who spoke earlier in his welcome remarks, noted that the Annual Seminar for Maritime Journalists has become one of the Key Performance Indicators KPI of the Public Relations Department of the Council as an organisation, adding that his organisation is deeply grateful to successive heads of the department.

“Every year, in the last nine years, we gather like this to deliberate on a particular issue that is central or germane to the Nigerian maritime industry. This year, we have carefully chosen the Theme as: The Nigerian Shippers’ Council in Transition: Issues, Prospects, Challenges.

“This year, we deliberately narrowed-down our focus to a topic that can offer a dual opportunity for maritime journalists and content owners to acquire knowledge about the emerging dispensation at the NSC, and also understand the apprehension of direct stakeholders about The Nigerian Shipping and Port Economic Regulatory Agency Bill 2023, which is in the last stage of being enacted.

“We commend the determination of the management of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council for giving the Bill all that is required to come to life. The bold move to regenerate the NSC is the motive behind the zeal.

“Currently the rating of ease of doing business in the ports is low. It is anticipated that the new law will ensure that there is fairness and competition in pricing of services, while providers and users enjoy a new experience. Certainly, its passage and eventually signing into law by President Bola Tinubu will usher-in a new dispensation of efficient service delivery in Nigeria’s port industry”, he also said.

A highpoint of the occasion was the presentation of awards to the CEO of the Council, Barr. Akuta, the CEO of the Centre for Public and Private Enterprise CPPE, Dr. Muda Yusuf, who was also doubled as the chairman of the event and other distinguished guests.