INDIGENOUS CARGO-CARRYING ADVOCACY AND EXHIBITION TO BE HELD IN LAGOS
…as stakeholder states reason why government should revisit Section 35-38 NIMASA Act
By Joy Enamuna
A renowned Maritime Practitioner, Dr. Edmund Chilaka, has asked the Federal Government to revisit the Nigeria Maritime Administrative and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Act Sections 35-38, which provides for Indigenous carriers to carry Federal, State and Local Government cargoes in international trade.
Addressing Journalists at a press conference in Apapa Lagos ahead of his Book Launch, Indigenous Cargo-carrying Advocacy/Awards and Exhibition, the Chief Host, Dr. Edmund Mbama Chilaka said the event would recognize operators who are keen to bring economic empowerment of Nigerian carriers into effect.
Using his wealth of experience in mentorship and as a seasoned lecturer of Transportation, Logistics, and the History of Transport at Lagos State University and the University of Lagos, Dr. Chilaka recommended the book to independent researchers and research institutions.
Speaking on how to develop the economy, Dr. Edmund Mbama Chilaka said, “the book to be launched traced the origin and implementation of shipping policies in Nigeria from colonial times to the early 21″ century, including the historical records of the shipping policy formulation and implementation in Nigeria, the successes and the failures.
It also contains chapters on the following institutions and milestones in Nigeria’s maritime trade and other modal applications”.
Continuing, Dr Chilaka said that the book looked into “the Federal Ministry of Transportation, its Agencies and Parastatals before the creation of the Marine and Blue Economy Ministry; the countertrade policy as it was used from 1982 to 1987 by the Shagari, Buhari/Idiagbon, and Babangida administrations; the five modes of transportation, intermodalism, multimodalism and the history of interstate long-distance bus travel and cargo logistics in Nigeria, and a brief history of international maritime statutory bodies, auxiliary bodies, stakeholder associations, and the thirty-one prominent and significant trade associations and unions currently active in Nigeria’s maritime sector, with their officers, and official contact details.
Two other topics were contributed by guest writers as follows: The activities of arbitration societies in the Nigerian merchant marine industry authored by Pier Luigi Carrodano, immediate past Group Managing Director of the Comet Group of Companies, while the history of shipbuilding and repairs in Nigeria, with a case study of the Nigerdock at Snake Island Lagos, written by Engineer Fidelis Akinayo and Engineer Nkpubre O. Nkpubre, ex-top managers at the company.
More so, the book will also be of tremendous assistance to potential interviewees in the industry for information on writing their projects, theses, or dissertations. The volume was also packaged as a snapshot of maritime history to inform future generations. It’s a must-read for students of transport and logistics in tertiary institutions.
“The Indigenous Cargo-carrying Advocacy/ Awards, and exhibitions shall be followed by seminar paper presentations on the second day of the event which will focus on the needful significant changes for achieving the envisaged objectives of nurturing indigenous cargo-carrying capacity.
According to Dr. Chilaka, “the paper presenters will tackle the prospects and challenges of reactivating Sections 35-38 of NIMASA Act on indigenous carriage of Federal, State, and Local Government cargoes impelled by international trade”.
