Dr. Dakuku Peterside, Director General, NIMASA

Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency NIMASA, Dr Dakuku Peterside, has again assured maritime stakeholders that the Coastal and Inland Shipping Act 2003 also known as the Cabotage Act will be implemented fully.

Dakuku who stated this when receiving the leadership of the Nigeria Merchant Navy Officers and Water Transport Senior Staff Association led by the National President, Comrade (Engr) Matthew Alalade at the Agency’s Headquarters in Lagos, also noted that because the Cabotage Act is instrumental to the development of the maritime industry, Nigerians must be encouraged to be key players in the sector. He reiterated that the issue of abuse of waivers would be checked and halted.

According to the director general, “

We have not realized the full potential of the Cabotage Act but we have moved a step ahead. Just to be sure that we are committed to the full implementation of the Cabotage Act, issues relating to waiver abuse are currently being dealt with accordingly. For the Cabotage vessel Financing Fund, CVFF, we will rigorously screen applicants for the CVFF in order to ensure that the funds are disbursed to people who would use it for the purposes the fund is established for”.

The NIMASA Director General also disclosed that the Agency is currently screening maritime institutions across the country and would only accredit those that can provide maritime trainings in line with globally acceptable standards.

While calling on the Agency to find ways of reviewing the Act to pave way for indigenous operators to be more involved in coastal and inland trade in Nigeria, the association also sought greater collaboration with NIMASA especially in the areas of maritime regulatory decision making and human capacity building for the growth and development of the industry.