Executive Secretary/CEO, Nigerian Shippers Council, Mr. Hassan Bello

BY FRANCIS EZEM

The Nigerian Shippers’ Council is concluding plans towards the hosting of a two-day sub-regional workshop in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city, which is slated to begin September 25, 2018.

The workshop with the theme: “Port Concession in West and Central Africa; Impact on Economies of member states of the sub-region” organised by council in collaboration with the Joint Standing Committee Meeting of Union of African Shippers’ Councils UASC and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development UNCTAD is targeted at the governments of member states.

A statement by the Council says that international and regional organisations as well as other stakeholders in the trade and transport facilitation process in the West and Central African sub-region have indicated their interest to attend

The workshop is also expected to appraise the state of maritime transportation in West and Central African in relation to other regions of the world and proffer solutions to challenges facing the sector; assess the implementation of World Trade Organisation WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement TFA and issues relating to port operations.

It is also expected to advocate the development and maintenance of criticial trade support facilities and infrastructure that would promote efficiency, competitiveness and cost reduction in the carriage of goods as well as linkages to other markets.

Similarly, the workshop would look at the state of maritime transport in West and Central Africa:  UNCTAD’s viewpoint; Sea Link: A Panacea for boosting Intra-African Trade; Charges, Surcharges and related costs of carriage of goods; Evaluation of the International Maritime Organisation IMO’s Container weighing regime, Verified Gross Mass VAM and impact on shipping services and business.

Recall that the as a specialised organ of the Maritime Organisation of West and Central Africa MOWCA, the UASC as a specialised organ of the Maritime Organisation of West and Central African (MOWCA) comprises of nineteen Shippers’ Councils and similar organisations of West and Central African Countries.  The Union with its Headquarters in Douala Cameroun comprises three main organs; The General Assembly, Steering Committee and General Secretariat.

The UASC became a member of the Global Shippers’ Forum GSF in September 2010 and maintains close relations with other international organisations, notably; the WTO, the IMO, World Customs Organisation WCO, United Nations Commission for International Trade Law UNCITRAL and the UNCTAD.

The Nigerian Shippers Council, which plays the dual role of protecting shippers’ cargo interest and the nation’s port economic regulator, has over the years hosted the sub-regional workshops under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of Transportation that have gone a long way in the reduction of the incidence of high transport cost on the economies of West and Central African countries.