Headlines

NIWA Issues Licenses to eight companies for Lagos – Onitsha barge operations

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA)said on Wednesday that a total of eight companies have been licensed by the authority to commence barge operations from Lagos seaports to the Onitsha dry port in Anambra state.

Managing Director of the waterways authority, Dr. George Moghalu disclosed this during the inauguration of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC)- NIWA Technical Committee in Lagos.

The MD who was represented by NIWA’s General Manager in charge of Marine, Mr. Joseph Orhorho who joined the meeting virtually, noted that the companies would commence operations in a couple of weeks adding that the collaboration between the council and the waterways authority would further enhance the maritime potential.

According to him, the collaboration between both agencies was aimed to move cargoes on the inland waterways to the hinterlands without hiccups saying that the synergy was coming at the appropriate time to boost waterways mode of transportation.

He noted that the project of barging cargoes from Lagos to Onitsha river port cannot be executed by NIWA alone but stressed the need for a robust working relationship with other sister agencies of the government.

Speaking earlier, the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Shippers’Council, Barrister Hassan Bello explained that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Technical Committee by both agencies of the federal government under the Ministry of Transportation, was set up to seamlessly boost cargo movement via the inland waterways.

Bello also stressed the need for constant dredging and charting of the river channels to enhance effective navigation of the crafts.

He called on the management of NIWA to ensure that barging activities was exclusive to indigenous players in sub-sector as part of efforts to build capacity for local operators.

Bello pointed out that the movement of barges of the inland waterways must be properly regulated by the agency even as he harped on the need to connect the brown waters with roads and railways in furtherance to facilitate movement of goods to and from the hinterlands.

Considering the important role of NIWA operations in the marine ecosystem, the Executive Secretary affirmed that “We look forward to the development of indigenous technical and managerial capacity for barge operations.

” It is pertinent that this sector is adequately standardised to ensure safe, secure, and efficient service delivery for proper integration of barge operations into our nation’s transportation system to help decongest our seaports and facilitate a multi-modal approach to cargo evacuation.

“Our target is to ensure the availability, affordability stability, predictability adequacy and accessibility of Transport services, facilitation of multi-modal approaches to the movement of cargoes and persons, development of critical transport infrastructure that supports trade as well as enforcement of good services standards and best practices across transport mode as reasonable cost in Nigeria.

“We have river ports that can readily support decongestion of the port through quicker evacuation of containers from the seaports of the hinterland by barges.

However, the highpoint of NSC/NIWA Technical Committee membership was the inauguration proper which has Ms A. I. Ezedinma Director Regulatory Services, Mrs. A. V. Okam, Director, Inland Transport Services, Barrister T.H Idris, Director Legal Services and Chief Cajetan Agu, Director Consumers Affairs Department all from the Nigerian Shippers’Council.

Others are:General Manager (Legal/cS) Barr. Danladi lbrahim, GM(Engr. Service), Engr. Christopher Asindi, GM(Marine Service)Engr. Joseph Ororo and GM(Survey) Surv. Denis Osamwuta.

Headlines

MWUN threatens to picket shipping companies, terminal operators over manipulation of pension remittances of seafarers, dockworkers

Gloria Odion

The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria(MWUN) has accused terminal operators, shipping companies and ship owners of shortchanging dockworkers and seafarers in their employment in the remittance of their pensions to the appropriate authorities.

In a statement by the union led by Comrade Francis Bunu Abi, the erring service providers were allegedly either holding back the deductions made from the salaries of their staff into the pension funds scheme or under- remitting the deductions.

The union warned of dire consequences for such act which it regarded as unethical and illegal and threatened to shut down any service provider found culpable in this illegal act.

“The leadership of the Union recently got the wind of these employers of labour and terminal operators over their acts of irregular remittance of their employees pensions to its appropriate quarters.

“Thus shortchanging the Seafarers and the Dockworkers, both categories of workers from the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria.

“It was also learnt that some Ship Owners and Terminal Operators have allegedly stopped the remittance of Dockworkers and Seafarers’ PSA in their employ, which is a gross violation of labour laws.

” As a result, the President -General of the Union, Comrade Bunu, stated that the Union will have no other option than to descend heavily and bring to book all the earring managements of these companies working against the ethics and practices of labour rules in their various companies.

“The Delta State- born labour leader made this point known, stressing that it’s unlawful to deny workers their pensions rights either by crook or hook,; and may not hesitate to call out these Concessionaires and Shipping Companies that have defaulted in the payment of the statutory pensions of the Union Members.

“Comrade Bunu also said that these erring companies in the Maritime sector would be shut down if this ugly trend is not reversed to status quo.” the statement concluded.

Headlines

Tantita Security to bankroll 2025 OTC in USA

Gloria Odion

The foremost security provider in Nigeria, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL) has been confirmed as the official sponsor of the 2025 Offshore Technology conference scheduled to hold in Houston Texas, United States on 5-8 May , 2025 .

Executive Director, Technical and operations , Tantita security services Limited, Captain Wareddi Enisuoh in an interview with journalists on Friday, said the company attracted the OTC conference lucrative sponsorship deal in recognition of its capacity to deliver on the conference.

Founded in 1969 , Offshore Technology conference is a series of conferences and exhibitions, focused on exchanging technical knowledge relevant to the development of offshore energy resources , primarily Oil and Natural Gas.

The conference also serves as the meeting place for the brightest minds to share ideas , discuss, debate and build consensus around the most pressing challenges and innovations in the offshore energy sector.

This year’s exhibitors , speakers and attendees represent some of the highest calibre professionals from more than 100 countries .

Customs

Customs shuns N12 trillion inflated revenue target imposed by National Assembly

— focuses on realising N6.5 trillion 2025 target

Funso OLOJO

The Nigeria Customs Service may have tactically shrugged off the imposition of the N12 trillion revenue target by the National Assembly.

It could be recalled that government gave the NCS ₦6.5 trillion revenue target for 2025.

This followed the impressive revenue performance of the service in 2024 when it surpassed that year’s target of N5.07 trillion by 20.2 percent.

However , in January, 2025, the National Assembly joint committee on Finance led by its chairmen, Senator Sani Musa and Hon. James Faleke, believed that the projection of N6.5 trillion revenue target given to the customs was conservative and encouraged the NCS to aim higher.

Consequently, the joint committee slammed a whooping sum of N12 trillion as revenue target, doubling the initial N6.5 trillion projected revenue.

This humongous target sparked off an outrage among perplexed stakeholders who felt the target imposed by the law makers was outrageous and unrealistic which they feared may stretch the capacity of the customs to a breaking point and put unnecessary pressure on the men and officers of the agency.

Indication that the Customs authority may not be well disposed to the imposed target of N12 trillion by the National Assembly emerged recently when the Comptroller -General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, was giving account of the activities of the service in the first quarter of 2025.

While giving the analysis of the revenue performance of the service during the period under review, Adeniyi benchmarked the revenue generated by the service during the first quarter of 2025 by N6.5 trillion revenue target given by the Federal Ministry of Finance, thus jettisoning the N12 trillion imposed by the National Assembly.

“ Against our annual target of ₦6,580,000,000,000.00, the first quarter’s proportional benchmark stood at ₦1,645,000,000,000.00.

“I’m proud to announce we’ve exceeded this target by ₦106.5 billion, achieving 106.47% of our quarterly projection.

” This outstanding performance represents a substantial 29.96% increase compared to the same period in 2024, where we collected

₦1,347,705,251,658.31″ Adewale stated, while giving the analysis of the performance of the service in the first three months of the year.

Analysts believed that from the analysis of the revenue performance of the NCS in the first quarter of the year which was predicated on the N6.5 trillion revenue target, it was obvious that the service was not paying much attention to the imposed N12 trillion, but rather focusing on how to meet the more realistic target of N 6 .5 trillion.

” You can see that the CGC did not make mention of the N12 trillion imposed by the National Assembly which presupposes that the unrealistic amount is not in the reckoning of the Customs” a customs broker who plies his trade at Apapa port, said, pleading for anonymity.

” Where on earth do they want the Customs to realize such an humongous amount of money in a depressed economy, in a country where importation has plummeted due to the unfriendly policies of government?

“It is unfortunate that these people (the law makers) have lost touch with the current economic realities in the country.

” All what they are after is to witch hunt government agencies to go and hunt for money for them to share.

” If not, how could they sit down in the comfort of their air conditioned offices and imposed such amount of revenue for customs to realize.

” Of course, the pressure would be on the men and officers of the service who will in turn go after the hapless importers and their agents in the most brutal way to raise the imposed target.

” It is unfortunate that the lawmakers, who are expected to make laws that will encourage export drive of the Federal government, are those asking the customs to focus more on the import goods where such money could be realized” another freight forwarder, who did not want his name in print but based at Tin Can Island port, declared.