Ensuring Efficiency At Nigerian Ports

The huge congestion at the nations’ ports coupled with the exorbitant charges on importers, in the maritime sector have again brought to the fore the need for a more efficient service delivery and transparency in the sector. This fact was  revealed during a two-day tour of ports in Rivers State by the Sub-Committee on Ministerial Task Force on Ports Efficiency and Charges led by a Director in the Ministry of Transport, Mrs Chinwe Ezenwa.

The Committee was set up by the Minister of Transport on assumption of office and is geared at seeking ways to inject transparency and efficiency at the nation’s ports. The committee among other mandates is also saddled with the responsibility of ensuring that arbitrary charges and duplication are phased out by agencies responsible for managing the ports. The aim is to ensure that tariff structures, terminal plans and equipment must be in tandem with current demands in the maritime sector. This will curb the cumbersome clearance procedures that are fast having their toll on the economy.

Reacting to the trend, Mrs Ezinwa said: “The government would not leave any stone untouched to ensure that the ports are rid of corruption. Government is frowning that people pay for services but unfortunately they don’t get them”. The taskforce chairperson averred that the country was losing huge revenue from the rot that have overtaken the sector, while neighbouring countries are reaping huge fortunes because of the way and manner their maritime sector was being managed. 

As the country marks its 50th Independence Anniversary, Mrs Ezenwa said that it is time stakeholders rose up to the challenges of strengthening the sector which besides oil and gas was the highest revenue earner and largest employer of labour.

Nigeria has lost hugely following the diversion of vessels to neighbouring countries such as Benin, Togo, Cameroon and Senegal. Recent statistics reveal that the Global merchant fleet has risen to 15,555 with about 4,170 containers, yet more than a quarter do not berth at the nation’s ports, despite its huge human and natural resources. This is blamed on the inefficiency at the ports coupled with the multiple charges, which scare exporters.

Speaking on the development when the Taskforce visited his company, Managing Director of Aero Maritime Limited, Mr. Ben Okonkwo Atiah noted that the government should review the tariff as there was a lot of inconsistencies. One major reason he identified as responsible for high tariff was that a lot of companies which benefited from the port concession in 2005 – 2006 wanted to recoup their investment. According to him, the government should approve midstream haulage to minimize the problem of ports congestion. Okonkwo – Atiah lamented that the difficulties posed by the narrowness of the water channel does not give room for huge vessels to access the Onne Port. Following the improved traffic witnessed at the port recently, it is believed that equipment should be installed to take care of the situation. Lack of equipment contribute to demurrage at the ports because of some heavy consignments.

The country must be geared at repositioning to be a super power in the maritime sector as the traffic is fast swinging to the control of Asian countries like Malaysia, Singagore, Thailand and China. With Europe losing grip of the sector, the country may make swift policies that would enable it be a force to reckon with in Maritime within Africa considering its numerous resources.

One thing that bordered stakeholders most was the demurrage at the ports. But it is believed that the problem could be addressed if the necessary environment was created. According to investigations by The Tide it is still difficult for agents and importers to clear their goods within the stipulated period by 28 days. A visit at the Lagos ports indicate that containers are at seven height, while in Port Harcourt they are at three height.

Controller of Customs, Onne Port, Jibrin Musa, says the problem cannot be divorced from the insincerity on the side of importers and agents who want to cut corners. In a bid to short-change government, importers and clearing agents collude to deceive security agents about the content of their containers. Reacting to the allegation that Customs and Excise compound the problem by not being proactive and punctual at their duty posts, Musa throws the blame to clearing agents who make it difficult for custom officers to achieve 100 percent examination of consignments.

He says, “A lot of custom agents come to work by 12 pm and delay clearance and there is no way would fail to do our work”. Besides, he disclosed that the customs was repositioning to equip itself of modern information technology to hasten clearance activities. “We need to rebrand the whole process but if the consignee and the agent would do the right documentation then the problem is solved,” he remarked.

At the West African Container Terminal (WACT) Nigeria Limited, the Taskforce raised eyebrows over the multiple charges alleged to have been charged on freight fowarders. Chairman of National Association of Government Approved Freight Fowarders (NAGAFF), Onne Chapter, Sir Francis Onwuchekwa, lamented that members were being burdened by the numerous arbitrary charges, especially on the delivery of their consignment. He said, “every activity done in WACT is attached with payment”, adding that sometimes cargoes are not delivered as at when due yet the company penalizes and charges freighter with demurrage.

Sir Onwuchekwa’s view had been expressed by Prince Shittu, a member of the Task Force and National President of Association of Nigerian Licensed Custom Agents (ANLCA) who argued that multiple charges were putting a lot of agents out of business. Prince Shittu explained that the huge labour force in the Maritime sector would be endangered if they continue to record loses due to the shortfalls in the industry. He insisted that delay in cargo delivery should not be solely borne by custom agents, since most of the delay that lead to demurrage was caused by both port operators and custom officers, who fail to report promptly to duty.

There were allegations that WACT was not efficient and transparent in its operations. But Deputy Manager of the firm at Onne, Mr. Martins Jacob, told the Committee that the port was experiencing boom in vessel handling. He stated that traffic has improved since 2006, when the Onne Port was declared Oil and Gas Free Zone (OGFZ).

The WACT terminal has a tonnage of 9,000 within nine days recently, Martin declared. He also hinted that about 100 containers were moved from Lagos Port to Onne due to congestion. Since Onne has one of the highest rainfall period in West Africa it is believed that excessive rains affect operations, hence the delay in delivering consignment. Since no increment has been made since 2006 custom agents are being delayed as a result of their inability to meet deadline of three days.

Commenting on the deadline, Mrs Ezenwa expressed displeasure and said it was too short considering the technical and human hiccups at the ports. She advocated a grace period of five days between the day a vessel berths and the day of departure, to provide enough room for documentation and clearance. She said that since the ports were concessioned for efficiency, the consignees should operate with human consideration, and frowned at the obsession to make profits at the disadvantage of other stakeholders.

Intels Nigeria Limited was, however, singled out as a model for injecting novelty in the maritime sector. It was advised to carry other organisations along. Operations Manager of Intels, Dr. Friday Antai, had informed the Committee of the numerous contributions the multinational had made to transform the maritime sector. He declared that the vision of the firm was to assist in the development of Onne Port, adding that since it started operations there about  100 other companies had sprouted.