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Amaechi charges Port State Control officers on professionalism

The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has charged Port State Control Officers (PSCOs) to display a high level of professionalism in carrying out their duties of inspecting foreign ships at national ports.
Amaechi said this in a statement signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the Ministry, Mr. Eric Ojiekwe.
He spoke at the 11th Port State Control Committee (PSC) Meeting of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on PSC for West and Central Africa Region, also known as (Abuja MoU) in Lagos.
According to the minister, the essence of PSC is the inspection of ships, to verify their condition, equipment, and whether it is manned and operated in compliance with the requirements of international conventions and regulations.
He said that it was also aimed at ensuring maritime safety and security of lives, assets, and the prevention of pollution.
The Minister, while referring to the port officers as ambassadors of the MoU, said continuous training was required to maintain set standards at Ports.
He, however, called on member states to work together in achieving set goals.
“Bearing in mind that Port State Control Officers are ambassadors of the MoU, it is therefore important that they constantly undergo continuous trainings.
”This will impact on their knowledge and skills as well as on their overall standard of inspections at the Ports. However, this cannot be achieved without the commitment, financial and otherwise of every member state.
“We must all join forces and strive to ensure that we constantly uphold the ideals and objectives upon which the MoU was established.
”For this reason, I urge all member states to play their parts in contributing towards the growth of the Abuja MoU, so that we can constantly meet with expectations and safeguard our marine domains,” he said.
The Minister thanked member states for ensuring that the Abuja MoU performed well in the face of COVID-19 and urged them not to relent in their commitments to inspections, training, and overall contributions.
“I must thank most of our member states for their performance and swift responses in declaring seafarers as key workers and in lending their support to ensure that the impact of COVID- 19 did not disrupt global shipping.
”While it is to be noted that the resulting effect of the pandemic slowed down inspection of vessels, nonetheless, based on our 2020 Report, the Abuja MoU performed relatively well in the inspection of vessels that called at our Ports,” he said.
On his part, Ghana’s Minister of Transportation and Chairman of Abuja MoU, Mr Kwaku Asiamah, said Port State Control acted as an important safety net to eliminate the operation of sub-standard ships to ensure the needed safety.
Mr Asiamah said that in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic, ”our performance as flagship states have been very encouraging.”
He called on member states to prioritise the vaccination of seafarers, their off and on signings, especially in the repatriation process and ensure strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols.
He said this would ensure the protection of PSCOs and the Crew of vessels visiting their ports.
Mr Asiamah also charged member states to be guided by the IMO’s Code of Good Practice for PSCOs and other relevant circulars and statutory documents in conducting inspections within the framework of the regional MoU and agreement on PSC.
He urged them to ensure their PSCOs were empowered to safely conduct inspections and to always aim at exceeding the agreed 15 percent minimum number of foreign vessels that call at the country’s ports.
”States should also accept and endorse the IMO’s guidelines on Cyber Security as part of the Safety Management Codes,” he said.
The Ghanaian minister also called on women to explore careers in PSC and other related fields, saying “women are great agents of change.”
He also called for the involvement of women as Port state control officers.
Headlines
Exclusive! Hope rises on take-off of proposed $3bn Badagry Deep Seaport as NPA, APMT resume discussion

The approval was finalised following a presentation by the Federal Ministry of Transportation at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) during the last administration of President Mohammed Buhari.
According to officials, the port is expected to generate $53.6 billion in revenue over the 45 years concession period.
The proposed site of the project is located 55km west of Apapa and the port of Lagos, along the 55km long Lagos-Badagry Expressway, which is being upgraded from a four-lane to a ten-lane expressway.
The port is expected to have an annual throughput capacity of 1.8 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs).
The proposal for the project was announced in 2012. Feasibility studies have been completed and construction works are yet to start.
The project will be implemented in four phases, with the overall project cost estimated to range between $2 billion and $3 billion.
Also, it is expected that the new port will primarily ease pressure on the existing ports of Lagos, Apapa and Tin-Can Ports, which handle approximately 85 percent of the country’s non-oil throughput.
It will further alleviate the burden on the country’s existing ports, which are on the verge of exceeding their cargo handling capacities, and address the country’s annual container traffic, which is expected to grow to 10 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units by 2030.
Plans for the adjoining Badagry Free Trade Zone will include a power plant, oil refinery, industrial park and warehousing and Inland Container Deport functions.
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Jamoh, Bello- Koko, serial award winners, bag National Productivity merit awards

The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Dr. Bashir Yusuf Jamoh, is gradually turning into a serial award winner as he has landed yet another plaque of honour from the federal government.

An excited Jamoh expressed appreciation to the Federal Government, noting that it is a call to greater service to our Fatherland.“I am spurred by this award, particularly as it is coming from the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity, which underscores the ministry’s role in ensuring reward for hard work and productivity in public service”
“Let me also use this opportunity to dedicate the award to the industry’s stakeholders; external and internal, as they have made our work easier as an administration.
“We will continue to strive to make the maritime sector a viable economic driver, especially with the Blue Economy mantra, which is critical to the sustainability of the maritime sector”, Jamoh said.
Commenting the on the selection of the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, the DG said it is a well-deserved honour, as she has remained a core professional and astute administrator in the coordination of activities in the Ministry and the Agencies under the supervision of the Ministry.
“I am not surprised by her selection, as she is an administrator par excellence and has remained resolute and professional in the discharge of her duties.
”This conferment can only spur me and the entire team at the Nigerian Ports Authority whose commitment to exceptional performance culminated in this recognition, to continue pushing the limit and advancing the frontiers of trade facilitation.
”Imbued with the understanding that excellence is a moving target, I want to seize this moment to assure that we will not rest on our laurels in our resolve to turn our rich maritime potentials into actualities’, an elated Koko declared.
The National Productivity Order of Merit Award was instituted by the Federal Government of Nigeria to recognize and honour productive individuals and organizations in Nigeria in the year of the award for achievements made in the preceding years.
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Shippers’ Council bestows on APMT certificate of registration as regulated service provider at ports

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