By Seun Ibiyemi
To continue placing on the front burner issues affecting the Nigerian dockworkers, the Shipping Correspondents’ Association of Nigeria (SCAN) is set for the second edition of the SCAN Dockworkers’ Day.
Set on the theme, “Dockworkers: Key to Unlocking Nigeria’s Blue Economy,” the event, being organised in collaboration with the Maritime Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MWUN), focuses on the need to properly position, through capacity building, the dockworkers, who are integral to the terminals’ cargo handling job.
This is in the light of increasing developments in the industry geared at a more robust and resourceful harnessing of the ocean economy for a stronger Gross Domestic Product (GDP), with the port sector primary to that pursuit, and the dockworker an indispensable human resource.
In a statement signed by President of SCAN, Eugene Agha, the event is largely an early-warner to draw the attention of stakeholders, especially the government, terminal operators and the dockworkers themselves, to the imperative of capacity building germane to the increasing expectations from the sector in the light of a dynamic operating environment.
It is billed for Thursday, September 12, 2024 at the Rockview Hotel, Apapa, Lagos, and ready to attend is the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, H.E., Adegboyega Oyetola as Special Guest, and former Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Chief Adebayo Sarumi, as chairman of occasion.
Special Guests include the Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Barr. Pius Akutah, Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dayo Mobereola, and Managing Director of NPA, Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho.
Others are the Chairperson, Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria, Princess (Dr.) Vicky Haastrup, and the terminal operators, while the Managing Director, PTML, Mr. Ascanio Russo, is the keynote speaker.
It will also be an occasion to celebrate the exceptional dockworkers at the various districts, as well as the most supportive regulatory agencies and the terminal operators.