Harboursandport.com: Lagos - Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, has flagged off the National Wreck Removal exercise in Lagos, with a declaration that the maritime sector was being opened up for great investment opportunities with the exercise.
 |
L-R: Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi (middle); Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Bashir Jamoh (left); and Acting Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mohammed Koko, during the flag-off of the National Wreck Removal exercise along the Badagry Creek in Lagos.
Amaechi extolled the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime
Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Bashir Jamoh, for the
initiative, saying, “This creative venture of clearing our waters of wrecks and
derelicts, apart from guaranteeing better safety of navigation, opens up the
prospects of many new investments in the maritime industry.
“This
would tremendously help the Federal Government’s economic diversification drive
and enhance Nigeria’s standing within the global maritime community.”
The
Minister stressed the autonomous status of each of the agencies under the
Federal Ministry of Transportation, stating that all the heads of the agencies
are appointed on the basis of competence and expertise. He said he would always
support imaginative ideas from the Chief Executives.
“It
was the NIMASA DG’s idea that we should remove wrecks from our waters,” Amaechi
added.
In his
own speech, Jamoh said the successful removal of the wrecks and derelicts would
restore confidence in Nigerian waters, and eliminate obstacles to smooth, safe,
and profitable navigation. He thanked the Minister for pushing the wreck
removal idea through the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
Jamoh
said the commencement of the wreck removal exercise was another milestone in
the incremental achievement of the Triple S strategy of the current Management
of NIMASA, anchored on Maritime Safety, Maritime Security, and Shipping
Development.
The
Director-General stated, “These wrecks inhibit the operation of shipping
companies, which constantly strive to increase efficiency in order to remain in
business. As a result, most of the shipping companies usually avoid operating
or investing in areas where navigational hazards are identified due to high
insurance premium charges.”
He
said with the elimination or reduction of the costs associated with insurance,
survey, and charting of wrecks, the cost of shipping would drop, to the benefit
of mariners and other stakeholders in the maritime industry.
Jamoh
also discussed other benefits of the wreck removal exercise.
He
said, “It is pertinent to state that the benefits that would be derived upon
completion of the exercise extend to other areas of maritime core functions,
such as search and rescue services, Cabotage monitoring, as well as prevention
and mitigation of marine pollution.”
NIMASA
is charged with the responsibility of ensuring safety and security at sea as
well as regulating the maritime industry in line with international laws and
conventions, principally, the International Convention for the Safety of Life
at Sea (SOLAS) Convention of the International Maritime Organisation
(IMO).
“In
line with this mandate and in recognition of the importance of safety of
navigation in Maritime Administration, the Agency has established the need for
removal of critical wrecks along the Badagry Creek,” the Director-General said.
Jamoh
had disclosed during a Ministerial Retreat organised by the Federal Ministry of
Transportation (FMOT) in August that arrangements had been concluded for the
recycling of wrecks and derelicts that would be recovered during the wreck
removal exercise. He said this would be done in partnership with the Bayelsa
State Government and the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), which already has
a Foundry in Lagos for wrecks recycling, with the ultimate aim of creating
wealth from waste while providing jobs for Nigerians.
The
first phase of the wreck removal exercise took place along Badagry Creek.
Among
those in attendance were Acting Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority
(NPA), Mohammed Koko; Managing Director of Ragi Industries Limited, Nasir Raji;
President, Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN), Dr. MkGeorge Onyung.
Others were Executive Director, Finance and Administration, NIMASA, Hon. Chudi
Offodile; Executive Director, Operations, Mr. Shehu Ahmed; and Executive
Director, Maritime Labour and Cabotage Services, Mr. Victor Ochei.
No comments:
Post a Comment