Multinational shipping lines operating in Nigeria have bowed to pressure nearly two weeks after they initially boycotted an earlier meeting convened by the Nigerian Shippers Council and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarders in Nigeria CRFFN to discuss a strike notice issued by the freighters to protest imposition of arbitrary charges.

It would be recalled that Freight Forwarders drawn from the five major registered associations had penultimate week issued a withdrawal of service notice effective November 10, 2021 to all multinational shipping lines operating in the country over what they described as multitudes of complaints bothering on extortion and several other forms of imposition of illegal charges on their clients, the importers and transporters.

The shipping lines have also agreed to review the controversial container deposit and process of refund as well as other demurrage charges. In attendance at a meeting also convened by the CRFFN in Lagos, Wednesday were representatives of Maersk Line, Hull Blyt,Cosco andMediterranean Shipping Company MSC, among several others.

Registrar/CEO of the CRFFN, Sam Nwakaohu, who briefed newsmen after the five-hour meeting, expressed satisfaction that progress was being made in terms of the issues that gave rise to the strike notice, adding that he pledged during the inaugural meeting to ensure the shipping lines were in attendance at the next meeting.

He noted that it was an issue of strike was not in the interest of Nigeria’s economy, which informed the urgency with which the council was moving in trying to resolve all the issues to forestall a possible lockdown at the nation’s seaports, which would have far-reaching negative effects on the economy.

“You remember when we held the last meeting about one week ago or thereabout? We ought to have held other meetings but I have been in Abuja for our budget defence and I just came from the airport to this meeting venue, I have not been to my office today.

“This underscores the importance we attach to this issues, which we hope must be amicably resolved sooner than anyone would expect because we cannot afford a lockdown of Nigeria’s seaports. We commend the freight forwarders, who have listened to us as their regulators and we will not let them down because we have a statutory responsibility to protect their interest, which is also Nigeria’s interest.

“Most of the issues we raised in our last communique have been resolved and agreed upon, so going forward, a lot of things must change for the better. But there are also some issues we have agreed would be resolved at an executive session slated for tomorrow, so I strongly believe that after that Friday meeting, our freight forwarders would leave the hall smiling because all the issues would have been resolved amicably”, Nwakaohu assured.  

Acting chairman of Shipping Association of Nigeria SAN, umbrella body for all the multinational shipping lines in the country, Andrew Lynch, who also spoke with newsmen assured that the liners would comply with the outcome of the meetings to forestall a shutdown of the seaports, which would do no good to anyone including the liners.

Lynch who doubles as the Managing Director of MSC, assured that efforts were being made by most of the shipping lines to mop up the empty containers in the country and ship them off to Europe, America and Asia, which are currently grappling with the problem of scarcity of empty containers.

Recall that the eight-point communique issued at the first meeting, which was not attended by the shipping companies resolved that representatives of the shipping companies must be made to attend the next meeting and that the freight forwarders should pause the proposed strike action.

It was also the consensus of all parties in attendance that the CRFFN should synergise with the NPA and the Nigeria Customs Service with a view to strengthening the enforcement of the laws that protect the interest of freight forwarders but that they should in turn be patient with the new Information Technology introduced by some of the shipping lines. The freight forwarders should also automate their operational processes to be in tune with global developments.

Stakeholders also resolved that the freight forwarders and their clients, the importers and transporters should not be made to bear the cost of down time in the operations of the shipping companies and that NPA should ensure that freight forwarders should not be made to suffer due to the inadequacy of container holding bays, the issue of transfer of containers to some bonded terminals without the consent of the freight forwarders should urgently be reviewed.

It was further unanimously agreed by parties present at the meeting that the payment of un-receipted N100, 000 by freight forwarders, importers and transporters before they are allowed to drop their empty containers should stop with immediate effect.