2022 Preview: Stakeholders seek favourable trade policies, charge Govt on infrastructural facilities for Maritime, Aviation industry
By Seun Ibiyemi and Tobi Adetunji
MARITIME
Stakeholders in the Maritime and Aviation industry have sought favourable trade policies in 2022, and charged government on infrastructural facilities that will drive the sectors forward.
In a statement made available to Nigerian NewsDirect by President, Shippers Association of Lagos (SAL), Rev. Jonathan Nicole attributed the quest for a more conducive trade environment to the lingering effects of agitations, lawlessness and other negative consequences experienced in 2021.
He called on the port economic regulator to be more pro-active in curtailing and eliminating the root causes of maritime backwardness.
Nicole noted that the restrictions on foreign exchange would be counterproductive as a lot of industries would be grossly affected by the policy.
According to him, import trade will suffer due to foreign exchange restrictions.
He noted that importers could hardly pay freight charges as the approved window was $5,000 limit for 30 days.
“Freight above $5,000 will be held up until freight charges have been fully prepaid upfront. Goods will attract storage charges abroad for as long as the freight is pending and this type of restriction is counterproductive.
“However, it is encouraging that President Buhari promised to provide foreign exchange for industries and manufactures in 2022 because of the importance of local production of essential materials and for exports,” he said.
Nicole noted that the other major challenge was that 82 per cent of the country agro-allied products are either seized or rejected by EU countries, reasons being that they are illegally exported without certification of government agencies.
“82 per cent of export cargo is enormous. With this in view, it might grossly affect our farmers directly or indirectly without export proceeds from the receivers abroad,” he said.
Nicole said that to have a good trading environment, shippers expect the Nigeria Customs Service amendment of CEMA to meet with the current realities in the World Trade Agreements.
He said that they were seeking peaceful co-existence in the maritime sector, urging shipping lines and terminal operators to induce development of the maritime systems not just increasing costs as a major target.
“We expect reduction of cost of doing business in Nigeria and encourage entrepreneurship through direct investments from proceeds from our imports.
“The security of our waterways must be guaranteed. Fishing vessels should be protected to enable Nigerians supply fish into our various markets. This is local content.
“The Gulf of Guinea has to be protected from invading pirates. Nigeria waters should be safe enough for ourselves as stakeholders in Nigeria,” he said.
Nicole urged freight forwarders to be closer to cargo owners who provide them with jobs rather than becoming spies to government agencies in the name of getting rich quick.
Also in a chat with Nigerian NewsDirect, Project Coordinator of the Agege Deep Sea Port and a former Director of Operations at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Captain Warredi Enisuoh, spoke on predictions for the Maritime sector.
Maritime Security
He said, “One thing I expect would happen in the 2022 is that the piracy figure we’ll be down, it’s not because of the Deep Blue, but the actions that have been taken by the community leaders in the Delta, I’m not going to go into that.
“Especially Delta State, there is a mapped out plan that nobody should use it water for kidnapping, that is why the level of piracy is down.”
SHIPPING
“In terms of shipping, worldwide shipping, there’s going to be a bounce back, you understand, even though the Omicron current situation seems to be threatening a little bit, but because of the low level things in the past, there will be a very strong need to catch up.
“And that stronger need is going to bring about bigger ships, which may not be able to call in our ports.
“So very likely, unless we do something about our own systems and port, quite a fair bit of Nigeria cargoes may be dropped in neighbouring countries with very deep ports, and transship into our regional region.”
AVIATION
The 2021 Global Aviation industry was riddled with a plethora of challenges revolving round the novel pandemic (COVID-19) and other issues of fundamental importance.
Specifically, Nigeria Aviation industry was not an exemption, as a matter of fact the Aviation industry led by Senator Sirika Hadi had to grapple with the concession of the four major airports in the country, the establishment of the Aviation University, establishment of Nigeria National carrier, and regulatory issues among others.
While shades of opinions by expert have been aired in this regard, Nigerian NewsDirect has held conversations with relevant stakeholders in the industry pinpointing other germane issues in the aviation industry which the government should take cognizance of in the year 2022.
Interestingly, the views expressed by the duo of the stakeholders differs, but in substance proffer path to a veritable cum productive navigation for the industry in the 2022. An outlook of the activities of the Nigeria Aviation industry in the year 2022, by the President Air Transport Services Senior Association, Comrade Danjuma, emphasized that the “government should focus on the infrastructure, and the regulation in the Aviation industry. He noted that though the government has been doing a lot regarding the regulation, but more still need to be done.”
Danjuma charged the government to pay close attention to infrastructure and give rooms for relevant agencies in the industry to operate without interference.
“The infrastructure is more fundamental to the success of the Aviation industry in the year 2022. Government should allow the agencies to operate without interference, this will enable them to maximize their respective capacities. For instance, if FAAN is allowed to operate without interference it will go a long way, the same thing is applicable to other agencies. FAAN is handicapped in virtually all the things it could have done.”
The Union leaders commended the giant strides of the Federal government in her effort to establishing the Nigeria National Carrier (Air Nigeria) and the Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO). He noted that the capacity of the duo of the innovation will rake in foreign investment within and outside the continent of Africa.
“More fundamentally, if the Aviation roadmap is completed, the Nigeria National Carrier, and MRO, (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) is achieved the New Year will be better for the Aviation industry. With the MRO, Airlines in Nigeria will not have problem fixing airlines and countries in Africa will also come to fix their Aircraft in Nigeria.
“The combination of the national carrier and the MRO will definitely increase foreign direct investment in improve the economy. Although much has been done in the respect, almost 80% has been achieved in the implementation of the MRO and the national carrier.
“Regarding the Nigeria National Carrier, (Air Nigeria) it may be difficult for it to commence work fully April this year, as proposed by the Ministry of Aviation. But the Federal government has done a lot, as it stands, the most important thing is to get the airlines that will lease the aircraft. In not too distant time the advertisement will be out in that respect and other processes will follow suit, it can be done within the second quarter of the year.”
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Labour Congress Chairman, Lagos State Chapter Comrade Adelakun differed greatly. Adelakun was of the view that majority of the projects embarked on by the FG in the Aviation sector are “white elephant project” with the aim of deceiving the gullible masses in the next year election.
“The truth is most of the projects kicked off in the Aviation industry are political in nature. Most of the politicians don’t have any good plan, most of what their electoral promises are targeted towards next year election.”
Adelakun observed that “all the projects (National Carrier, Aviation University, among others) kick-started are all electoral promises, against next year’s election so that when they start their campaign, they will use it as a yardstick and people will vote for them again.”
He noted that, aside the “elephant project embarked on in the Aviation industry, the major projects the last Administration nearly completed before the end of the tenure are yet to be sorted out. From Ibadan to Lagos not more than one hundred and twenty Kilometers, has not been completed in almost eight years of Buhari regime.
“Also, take a look at other projects as well, I think the problem we are having in this country is essentially hunger and poverty that is why the masses are not reasoning futuristically. “The failure in the Aviation industry is a spillover of the challenges at the party levels, for instance, how many political parties followed through their manifestoes? They just used it as platform to assess political power. For me, I don’t see any way the Aviation ministry or government can complete the many projects it has embarked on.”
