ABUJA: The regulation of the nation’s seaports following its appointment as the interim port regulator, the Nigeria Shippers Council (NSC) has solicited for the support and co-operation of freight forwarders in the country.
To this end, NSC said it is already consulting the leadership of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) to ensure that it succeeds in its set goals and objectives.
The council said its collaboration with other stakeholders, especially freight forwarders, was to ensure a successful and efficient best practice in the Nigerian maritime industry.
The Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr. Hassan Bello stated this during a courtesy visit to the national secretariat of NAGAFF in Lagos.
The NSC helmsman hailed NAGAFF for the advancement of the Nigerian maritime industry through good policy for freight forwarding practice at the nation’s seaports.
He said: “NAGAFF is a major pusher of policy in Nigeria and the policy were never isolated. They have always consolidated with us. The freight forwarders are very important in the maritime sector and that is why NSC is agitating for professionalism, training and retraining, and capacity building.
“If we have capacity building we will have qualified professional freight forwarders who can sit down with shipping companies and terminal operators and negotiate whatever is possibly negotiated and we want them to be stronger in such negotiations. Professionalism should not be overtaken by touts or those without qualification “With the corporation of CRFFN we are setting up a technical committee, which will be supervised by the council.
The committee will look inward about quality of services we rendered on charges; rendering of training that will give the capacity to freight forwarders to negotiate in any part of the world. We have to make the Nigeria port efficient and have sharpen competitive edge so that the port will be preferred destination for cargo, attracting cargos from competitors that will enhances revenue for government and bring prosperity for the freight forwarders, terminal operators and other stakeholders. Also creating employment and give room for infrastructure and modernized practices.”
The founder of NAGAFF, Mr. Boniface Aniebonam in his remarks during the courtesy visit stated that NSC was acting on the mandate of Mr. President and Nigeria’s constitutional provisions.
According to Aniebonam, they have the cohesion to enforce regulations.
“The president cannot be everywhere and has delegated power to act on his behalf. Anyone that says NSC is a toothless bulldog is naïve,” he said.