Business
Nigerian Ship Owners Decry Govt’s Neglect
Nigerian ship owners
have raised alarm over government neglect of the shipping sector of the economy.
The ship owners, under the aegis of Indigenous Ship owners Association of Nigeria (ISAN), and the government’s inability to match words with action was the main reason why the huge potential of the maritime industry of the economy has not been maximised over the years.
They decried the absence of a virile indigenous maritime sector, which is capable of conserving the nation’s hard earned foreign exchange and boosting employment generation for rapid development of ship owners’ capacities and capabilities, is not high on the current national agenda.
Speaking at ISAN second quarter general meeting in Lagos, ISAN chairman, Chief Isaac Jolapamo, expressed regret that the various recommendations designed to turn the industry around remains unrealisable in view of absence of the approval by President Goodluck Jonathan.
His words, “we have made presentation to the president and the National Economic Management Team through membership of the presidential committee on harnessing the potential of the maritime sector for sustainable development where chaired the cabotage and local content sub-committee in addition to my membership of the business support group representing the maritime sector”.
“Our findings and experience in all of these interactions are mixed on one hand, we have been able to raise the issue of maritime underdevelopment to the highest national governance level. However, on the other hand we have realised that we have a huge task on our hands to ensure we achieve our objective”, the chairman said.
Chief Jolapamo stated that a situation where those who have sacrified a lot to sustain this industry are now languishing in penury while foreigners and their collaborators with none industry players continue to dictate the direction of the sector is absolutely intolerable.
He said the continuous engagement of the highest level of the government by ISAN was hinged on the belief that the association’s practical involvement would lead to policies that are beneficial to its members’ operations.
The ship owners also used the occasion of the meeting to announce a change in the name of their association from ISAN to Nigeria Shipowners Association (NISA) no reason was given for the change of name.
Credit to Nigeria’s private sector rose to N83.26 trillion in June 2026 from N81.04 trillion in May, signifying a positive balance of N2.22 trillion month-on-month.
Year-on-year, the figure represents a nine per cent increase compared with the N76.13 trillion recorded in June 2025. The latest figures come as the CBN continues to balance efforts to control inflation with the need to support economic growth and expand credit to businesses.
The CBN data shows that credit to Nigeria’s private sector increased by approximately 2.74 per cent month-on-month between May and June 2026. Also, the CBN data noted that credit to the government fell slightly to N40.03 trillion from N40.38 trillion. Other assets, net, dropped to N10.76 trillion from N12.63 trillion.
The credit surge signifies sustained growth in lending to businesses and other private-sector borrowers during the month. The rise in private sector credit was recorded alongside an increase in net domestic credit, despite declines in credit to government and other assets.
Further analysis of the report says that compared with June 2025, private sector credit rose by about N7.13 trillion yea-on-year but net domestic credit increased by approximately N1.87 trillion during the month.
The CBN’s relatively tight monetary policy stance notwithstanding, more banks still loaded funds to the private sector within the period. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) held its 306th meeting on July 20 and 21.
The Committee reviewed recent developments in the global and domestic economies, assessed emerging risks to the outlook and considered their implications for monetary policy and retained all rates.
The Committee decided to retain the Monetary Policy Rate at 26.5 per cent; the Standing Facilities Corridor around the MPR at +50/-450 basis points and retain the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) for Deposit Money Banks at 45.00 per cent, Merchant Banks at 16.00 per cent, and non-TSA public sector deposits at 75.00 per cent.
The MPC decision means that credit extension in the private sector will likely continue to rise because of rising confidence in the sector and calls by stakeholders for banks to invest in the private scetor instead of government securities.
