The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), on Thursday, launched the Ports and Customs Efficiency Committee (PCEC), a move aimed at enhanced efficiency and Ease of Doing Business at the nation’s sea ports.
Speaking at the inaugural meeting of the PCEC in Lagos, the director general of PEBEC, Princess Zahrah Mustapha, said improving efficiencies at the nation’s seaports would reduce cargo dwell time, vessel turnaround and turnover for Customers.
According to the PEBEC DG, the committee was launched to change the narrative of missed opportunities in the maritime sector and as well unlock potential opportunities, and enhance Nigeria’s economy.
Her words, “By improving efficiencies in our ports, we can drastically reduce the average cargo dwell time and turnover time for customers, eliminate duplication of documentation and manual processes, and ensure customers’ satisfaction.
“This is not just another one of our reforms, but this is about resilience; it’s about unlocking potential opportunities and enhancing Nigeria’s economy. This is not just a committee made up of government forces for a difference; this also has a lot of private sector stakeholders.
“It is a call to action for terminal operators to improve infrastructure and for shipping companies to increase efficiency to reduce delays, for freight forwarders to uphold compliance, and for regulators to reduce bureaucratic bottlenecks. It is a call for shared ownership of our shared problem and a commitment to deliver a shared solution.”
Speaking earlier, the managing director of NPA, Abubakar Dantsoho, said the authority is currently addressing four major pillars that are critical to repositioning the nation’s seaports and making it compete effectively with regional counterparts.
According to the NPA boss, investment in infrastructure, equipment, technology, and human capacity would improve the competitiveness and operational efficiency of the nation’s seaports.
Dantsoho noted that port infrastructure, particularly in Apapa and Tin Can Island Ports, is aged and in dire need of rehabilitation.
Also speaking the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, said an efficient port is critical to Nigeria’s logistics and trade competitiveness.
In his words, “We have identified key challenges that have caused the inefficiencies to be severe congestion, which leads to prolonged cargo dwell time, as well as escalated logistic costs.
“Also, the ports need to be revitalized for them to be efficient and this part, being efficient, is very critical to Nigeria’s logistics, trade, competitiveness, as well as regional and continental relations, particularly under the frameworks of the African Free Continental Free Trade Agreement.
“There’s a need for us to implement measures that require public-private collaboration, very important because the Nigerian government cannot afford to build on the infrastructures of the port. We need to have the private sector join us in doing that.
“We also need to have regulatory commitment, very important. All the MDAs must be committed to seeing that the ports are efficient. We also need to have sustained investment in infrastructure and technology.
