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The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has restates its commitment to achieve a sustainable maritime sector in Nigeria through an effective monitoring and control of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) from ships calling Nigerian ports in line with the Kyoto Protocol, an International Maritime Organisation (IMO) regulation.
NIMASA, which held a one-day stakeholders’ forum on MARPOL Annex VI and other emerging issues on climate change in the Nigerian Maritime sector in Lagos on Monday, said that the agency will align its activities with the IMO on climate change to support the efforts of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Speaking on the stakeholders’ forum, Dakuku Peterside, director general of NIMASA said that the forum will afford the agency the opportunity to work towards an effective and sustainable utilisation of the Nigerian water ways.
According to him, there is need to effectively use the waterways in addressing issues around hunger, poverty and sustainable production, which are critical goals in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN.
“To use the seas and oceans sustainably, Nigeria must address issues of climate change,” he stated.
Peterside further said that the MARPOL Annex VI will help NIMASA work on climate change resilience in the coastline especially as regards to solving national challenges in the Nigerian maritime sector.
“What we have done today is to rekindle the process of awareness so that those who own vessels must comply with the fuel content prescribe by the IMO, which stipulates that fuel in the ships must not contain more than a certain amount of sulphur and nitrogen,” he said.
Rotimi Fashakin, executive director, Operations of NIMASA, said that the forum was aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of ships calling Nigerian maritime domain. “We want to improve the condition and living standard of the people already threatened by the impact of climate change.
“NIMASA through its marine environment management department is spearheading the Nigerian maritime industry’s drive towards full compliance with the benchmarked Greenhouse Gas Emissions reduction stages in Nigeria,” he said.
According to Fashakin, sustainable development in the maritime industry will rely on a sustainable and efficient maritime transportation system. “With the amendment to MARPOL Annex VI, IMO has continued to develop practical assistance to support the uniform implementation of the convention throughout the global fleet.
“The stakeholders’ forum is to help raise awareness on the impact of climate change on maritime sector, especially gas emission from ships. However, if this is not checked, it will eventually affect us. Therefore, the IMO has put a cap on the amount of sulphur that is contained in the fuel that ship uses to reduce the effect of GHG and climate change,” he added.
AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE
