Stumps in port operations puts 40,000 jobs at risk

LAGOS — A drastic drop in vessel calls into the nation’s ports has plunged operations in the maritime sector into a major crisis as businesses continue to nosedive, following the forex crisis and inflation currently militating against the economy.

Those affected are terminal operators, shipping companies, truckers, licensed Customs agents, and freight forwarders, among others.

Consequently, the volume of vessel calls (the number of vessels coming into the country) has reduced so drastically that terminal operators and shipping companies are struggling to remain afloat.

According to checks, there has been a drop of 4.5 per cent in the number of vessel calls into Nigerian ports, from 3,957 in 2022 to 3,778 in 2023.

Reports from the Nigerian Ports Consultative Council, NPCC, in its quarterly meeting, showed that container traffic declined by 6.8 per cent to 1.56mn 20 Feet Equivalent Units, TEUs, from 1.68mn TEUs in 2023.

For instance, cargo imports dropped by 20 per cent, containerized goods by 30 per cent, and vehicle imports 55 per cent.

It was also learned that a vessel that previously came into the country with 4,000 containers now comes with just 300.

Acknowledging the drop, the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, Mr. Adewale Adeniyi, said there had been a drastic drop in cargo traffic and encouraged Nigerians to engage in more exports to boost the naira.

Adeniyi, who visited some of the terminals in Lagos, lamented that most of the terminals were empty, noting that import trade has dropped.

Vanguard

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