Hadiza Bala Usman, managing director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has described Nigerian port concession model as one used globally to improve efficiency in port system.
Usman, who said the port concession regime has not only brought about port efficiency, but has also helped to increase revenue generation of the NPA, lauded the Federal Government for entering into the concession agreement.
According to her, though port concession has been of a tremendous success, but there could be improvement in deployment of operational efficiencies across all Nigerian ports.
Speaking in Lagos on Monday when the executive members of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), paid her a courtesy visit in her office at the NPA headquarters, she said the NPA revenues has quadrupled after the concession.
“I think it is important to cast our minds back to the status of the ports before they were concessioned. While we note that there are concerns right now, but the concession of the Nigerian ports have been a tremendous success. We have seen improvement in turnaround time for vessels and huge improvement in our operational capacities,” she said.
Usman assured that the ongoing review of the concession agreement will bridge observed loopholes in the existing agreement, as the review will put in place measures that would discourage non-compliance by both the NPA and the concessionaires.
She further pointed out that the new agreement will also provide for sanctions for any party that defaults in compliance, adding that some of the key takeaways from the review would include sanctioning on both sides for non-compliance by either the concessionaires or the government.
“If government, for example, is required to maintain a particular depth of draft, and failed to do that, there will be a penalty that government has to take for not meeting its obligations. These were recommended to us by a consultant engaged by the World Bank to support the NPA and we are working with the terminal operators on what needs to be done to conclude this review,” she said.
Usman, who did not give specific timeline for the completion of the concession agreement review, assured that it would be concluded within the shortest possible time.
She listed issues around Guaranteed Minimum Tonnage (GMT) as one of those delaying the review as the NPA is presently discussing with the concessionaires to see what needs to be done because there are parts of the agreement that cannot be changed to a certain extent.
Earlier, Increase Uche, president of NAGAFF solicited for the removal of all barriers that impede the growth and productivity of the port.
“We need to look into the high cost of doing business at the ports because we are the ones bearing the brunt. Trade must be facilitated and the port must be seen to be efficient. Transport efficiency too must be combined especially as Nigeria has just signed the Africa Continental Free trade Agreement (AfCFTA),” he further requested.
AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE
