Dr Abubakar Dantsoho has since assumption of duty as Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority NPA, left no one in doubt that he is fully prepared for work; touching on port infrastructure, automation, human capital and now, an aggressive non-oil export drive, just in about four months. FRANCIS EZEM, who monitored the trends, reports.

The new Managing Director/CEO of the Nigerian Ports Authority NPA, Dr Abubakar Dantsoho was officially appointed by President Bola Tinubu on July 12, 2024 and he resumed after about one week, having received his letter of appointment from the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Hon Adegboyega Oyetola and he hit the ground running. Not only did he hit the ground running, he has also deployed his rich experience in the maritime industry, spanning over 25 years.

Recall that prior to his appointment, Dantsoho, who rose through the ranks had served in various capacities in the NPA as Assistant General Manager; Technical Assistant to the Managing Director; Port Manager, Onne Port; and Principal Manager, Tariff & Billing. His over 25 years of experience in the maritime industry, with expertise in areas such as maritime technology, ports management and operations, logistics, business and strategic planning, project management, and research, has no doubt been brought to bear on his new job as the Managing Director. He had also previously worked asChief of Staff to the Minister of Transport, Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, leveraging his wealth of experience and commitment to innovation in the transport sector. Little wonder he hit the ground running.

As a globally certified port expert, Dr. Dantsoho understands and also appreciates the crucial role modern infrastructure plays in the management of a modern port system. This lays credence to his insistence that the Authority under his watch must do everything humanly possible to renew the country’s existing infrastructure across port locations and also build new one. For instance, the control towers of the Lagos Ports Complex, Apapa was one of the infrastructural facilities that he inspected a day after assumption of duty. This is quite commendable.

He equally understands the key role played by automation in running a 21st century port system. This probably underscores his commitment towards taking the ongoing port automation to the next level. He had therefore assured stakeholders that NPA under his watch is unrelenting in its pursuit of full automation of the nation’s seaports’ operational processes and procedures. To achieve this, he has put machinery in place to actualise the NPA’s pet project, the Port Community System PCS which is expected to provide the pathway for the implementation of the long awaited National Single Window NSW platform.

Only last week, the MD muted the idea linking the Export Processing Terminals EPTs spread across the nation’s seaport locations with the Domestic Export Warehouses DEW. This is in line with measures to boost connectivity between the seaports and the domestic export warehouses with a view to growing the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises SMEs sector in the country and ultimately the national economy.

Speaking at the just concluded 2024 Lagos International Trade Fair entitled: “Connecting Businesses, Creating Value”, the Managing Director, restated the commitment of the NPA under his watch to Federal Government’s efforts at diversifying the economy by boosting non-oil exports. He therefore assured that linking the EPTs with the domestic warehouses would further boost the accessibility of the country’s non-oil exports to the global market arena and thus boost economic growth.

It was gathered that the linkage between the EPTs and the DEWs is being done in conjunction with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council NEPC and other relevant partners, which further underscores Dantsoho’s commitment to synergy.

“As some us are aware in our bid to contribute to the strengthening of the domestic economy through the promotion of balance of trade, we established the Export Process Terminal EPTs to simplify the hitherto burdensome process of exporting Nigerian products.

“The EPTs were conceptualised in partnership with the NEPC to serve as a one-stop-shop for the stuffing, packaging and certification of export-bound cargo in quick turnaround time by eliminating the duplications and bureaucratic overlaps that previously rendered the nation’s exports uncompetitive in the international marketplace.

“To facilitate seaport-hinterland connectivity and create pathways for the SMEs to play in the value chain, the EPTs are to be linked with Domestic Export Warehouses DEWs in synergy with the NEPC and relevant agencies and partners.

“To align with the ease of doing business orientation of the Federal Government, we are aggressively pursuing the full automation of our processes and procedures through the Ports Community System PCS which lays the groundwork for the implementation of the National Single Window NSW. The NSW is the global stratagem for delivering the greatest value with the greatest ease by connecting all stakeholders in the trade value chain for seamless interaction at the push of a button”, Dantsoho said.

He therefore assured the stakeholders at the fair that theme of the event is in tandem with NPA’s corporate aspirations, which align with Federal Government’s policy towards economic growth and diversification.

“I have said all of these, to show that the theme of the year’s fair “Connecting Businesses, Creating Value” is very much in tandem with our corporate aspirations

“As a business-enabling agency of government, the theme of the year’s fair “Connecting Businesses, Creating Value” is very much in line with our corporate aspirations. Let me also assure every stakeholder that our doors are always open for partnerships even beyond this trade fair. I therefore want to warmly invite you to interact with our business development team at the NPA stand and to also visit our fully interactive online real -time website www.nigerianports.gov.ng to access our growth offerings.

“Let me further seize the occasion of “NPA’s Special Day” to invite the entire trading and investing public to explore vistas of opportunities present at the Nigerian Ports Authority”, the NPA-boss said.

There is no doubt therefore that these reforms have greatly boosted the nation’s balance of trade, which before now, weighed in favour of imports against exports, especially non-oil exports. Available figures however showed that there has been a rebound in terms of Nigeria’s balance of trade, as non-oil exports have maintained a growth trajectory, especially in the last one year.

Figures released by Mediterranean Shipping Company MSC Nigeria, which accounts for the shipment of over 70 per cent of the country’s non-oil exports showed that it has shipped over 40, 000 twenty equivalent units TEUs of Nigeria’s non-oil exports in the last 12 months. These exports comprise mostly agricultural produce including cocoa, sesame seeds, ginger and soya beans, among several others.

Speaking recently at a one-day training workshop organised by the Nigeria Customs Service for the maritime media, Deputy Managing Director of MSC, Jacob Iosso, who made a presentation entitled: “The operating environment: Commercial terms and phrases used by shipping companies/lines in Nigeria”, disclosed that the country’s non-oil exports has grown exponentially, particularly in the last one year.

He further observed that many of the reforms to boost the country’s non-oil exports are beginning to yield results as indicated in rising export figures. He further noted that though the full details are not yet available, there are very strong indications that the current figures are higher than those of the previous year.

“We’re the no. 1 shipping line in Nigeria in terms of shipment of non-oil export cargo, and so I can tell you that there has been a significant increase in Nigeria’s non-oil export volumes, especially in the last 12 months”, the DMD said.

He commended the federal government through the NPA for all the reforms and new initiatives introduced over time to boost the nation’s non-oil exports.

From all indications, the nation’s seaports are indeed in good hands while the nation’s non-oil sector is in for good times, only time will tell.