Headlines

NIMASA, Hydrographic agency strengthen collaboration to enhance maritime safety

Gloria Odion, Maritime reporter

The management of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, (NIMASA) and the National Hydrographic Agency are exploring avenues to enhance the use and patronage of locally developed nautical charts and other hydrographic communication tools as part of efforts to advance maritime safety in Nigeria.

This formed the thrust of deliberations when the Hydrographer of the Nation, Rear Admiral Olumide Fadahunsi, paid a working visit to the management of NIMASA.

While commending the management of NIMASA for its commitment to maritime safety and development, Rear Admiral Fadahunsi assured the Agency of the National Hydrographic Agency’s continuous cooperation in the provision of hydrographic services to Nigeria’s maritime sector.

He noted that increased compliance with locally generated hydrographic information would improve navigational safety, maritime security, and the effective management of Nigeria’s territorial waters.

According to him, “Hydrography remains a critical component of maritime safety and national development.

” Strengthening collaboration between the National Hydrographic Agency and NIMASA will enhance navigational safety, improve maritime security, and support sustainable growth within Nigeria’s maritime domain.”

In his remarks, the Director General of NIMASA, Dr. Dayo Mobereola, stated that the Agency is focused on strengthening Maritime Safety Information infrastructure, enhancing enforcement strategies, and promoting continuous capacity building to improve hydrographic services in Nigeria.

He added that collaboration with the National Hydrographic Agency is central to achieving these goals.

Mobereola said, “At NIMASA, we recognize that effective collaboration among maritime institutions is essential to achieving safer and more efficient waterways.

“We remain committed to supporting initiatives that strengthen maritime safety, improve operational standards, and enhance the overall growth of Nigeria’s maritime sector.”

The collaboration between both agencies is expected to further strengthen maritime administration and support NIMASA’s statutory mandate of ensuring safety of navigation and shipping in line with the provisions of the NIMASA Act, particularly through the deployment and enforcement of accurate and up-to-date navigational charts essential for safe and efficient maritime operations.

Analyses

Tomorrow on ‘Monday Discourse with Nasiru’

Ahead of Tomorrow’s PMAWCA 2026 Opening: A Maritime Awakening or Continued Rhetoric?

Good evening, distinguished leaders and stakeholders.

As the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA) Board of Directors converges on Lagos tomorrow , Monday, May 18th, 2026, the sub-regional race for maritime supremacy enters a critical week.

With our own NPA Managing Director, Abubakar Dantsoho, holding the gavel as PMAWCA President, Nigeria has a rare diplomatic leverage.

Yet, as we prepare to discuss “Ports of the Future” tomorrow morning, a sobering reality remains: can we truly checkmate aggressive infrastructure expansions from regional rivals like Lome and Tema using yesterday’s centralized, shallow-draft Port architectures?

True maritime power is governed by Res Ipsa Loquitur—the thing speaks for itself—and the prolonged underutilization of our Eastern maritime flank tells its own story.

While conferences celebrate regional integration, Nigeria’s ultimate economic counterweight remains trapped in the balance: The Ibom Deep Sea Port.

Tomorrow morning, I will be dropping a comprehensive, feature analysis titled: “THE IBOM DEEP SEA PORT: Nigeria’s Ultimate Counterweight in the West African Maritime Race.”

We will dissect the technical realities of the April 2026 Feasibility Report, the legal maxims governing public infrastructure delivery, and the high-stakes timeline of the Bolloré Consortium as we approach the late-2026 dredging benchmarks.

Let’s watch the opening statements closely tomorrow, but more importantly, let’s prepare to interrogate the execution metrics.

Full analysis drops tomorrow.

Have a productive night ahead.

Customs

Beer merchants panic over tax stamp policy, seeks solace from Customs

Gloria Odion, Maritime reporter

The proposed Tax Stamp policy of the Federal government has expectedly activated panic mode among beer industry leaders who have expressed anxiety of possible escalation in the production and consumer costs if the policy is eventually implemented.

Though, there is an ongoing dialogue between stakeholders and the government to manage the economic impact of the policy, the leaders of the brewing sector had sought more clarification on the policy from the Nigeria customs service when they engaged with the Comptroller- General of the Service, Adewale Adeniyi on Monday, May 11th, 2026.

The brewers have come to discuss the economic impact the proposed policy will have on their brewing business.

At the roundabout discussion, Adewale had emphasised the need for credible data, inclusive consultations and sustained stakeholder engagement in Nigeria’s ongoing fiscal and regulatory reforms.

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‎Speaking during the engagement, CGC Adeniyi stressed that policy decisions affecting strategic sectors of the economy must be guided by verifiable data and a clear understanding of prevailing market realities.

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“‎We need to have a clear understanding of what constitutes illicit trade. Some of these products are legitimately manufactured in Nigeria.

“In other jurisdictions,customs administrations are already engaging in discussions around how such products find their way across borders and into unauthorised markets” the CGC stated.

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‎He further underscored the importance of accuracy and credibility in industry data presented to policymakers, noting that sound policy formulation depends on reliable information.

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‎“One thing we need to understand more clearly is where some of these estimates came from.

“When we are making policy decisions of this nature, the credibility and accuracy of data must never be in doubt,” he added.

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‎Highlighting the Service’s ongoing modernisation efforts, Adeniyi noted that the NCS has continued to introduce reforms aimed at improving trade facilitation and enhancing operational efficiency across the supply chain.

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‎“We have consistently introduced initiatives aimed at facilitating trade. We introduced the Advance Ruling. We introduced the Authorised Economic Operator programme.

“We also rolled out several reforms on our own initiative, not because we were under pressure, but because we recognised the need to improve trade facilitation,” he said.

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‎On the proposed tax stamp initiative, the CGC clarified that consultations with stakeholders are still ongoing and that no final decision has been reached regarding implementation.

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‎“As far as I am concerned, consultations are still ongoing. If this initiative is legitimate and beneficial, then we all have a responsibility to ensure that we are heading in the right direction,” he stated.

‎He also encouraged private-sector operators to maintain constructive engagement with relevant government agencies to ensure that any eventual policy framework balances revenue protection with industrial sustainability and economic growth.

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‎Earlier, the leader of the delegation and Chief Executive Officer of Guinness Nigeria Plc, Girish Sharma, said the visit was aimed at presenting the industry’s position on the proposed tax stamp framework, which he noted has generated considerable discussion within the sector.

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‎Sharma acknowledged the importance of regulatory controls but maintained that the beer industry remains one of the most structured and highly regulated sectors in Nigeria, with limited exposure to counterfeiting risks.

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‎“We fully understand the purpose and importance of tax stamps, particularly in industries where counterfeiting is a major concern.

“However, within the beer sector, counterfeiting is minimal,” Sharma said.

‎He noted that existing compliance and monitoring systems already provide adequate visibility across production and distribution channels.

‎“From an end-to-end compliance perspective, we believe there is already sufficient transparency and oversight,” he added.

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‎Sharma also highlighted the industry’s contribution to employment generation, government revenue and economic growth, cautioning that additional regulatory measures should be carefully designed to avoid unintended impacts on the sector and the wider economy.

The 2026 tax stamp policy in Nigeria is a regulatory, security-focused, and mandatory track-and-trace system imposed by the government on excisable goods—including alcohol, tobacco, and sugar-sweetened beverages—to curb illicit trade and bolster revenue.

The policy, aimed at reducing smuggling and counterfeiting, requires high-security physical labels or digital codes to be affixed to products.

The policy applies to excisable products such as tobacco, alcohol, and sugary drinks, with specialized stamps for textile imports, such as the Red vs. Green stamps.

Manufacturers must ensure compliance. Under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, compliance is required, and failure to stamp documents within 30 days can lead to severe penalties, including a 10% penalty fee plus interest.

While the government aims to enhance revenue, manufacturers, particularly in the brewing sector, have raised concerns that the policy could significantly diminish profitability and increase consumer prices, with potential to create 100% loss in profits if implemented as proposed.

Headlines

PMAWCA 2026 – Beyond Lagos rhetoric, Nigeria must lead Port evolution.

Ibrahim Nasiru

As the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA) Board of Directors meeting opens in Lagos tomorrow, Monday, May 18, all eyes are on Nigeria’s Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, and the NPA Managing Director, Abubakar Dantsoho.

While hosting this three -day high level gathering cements Nigeria’s diplomatic and geopolitical clout in the sub-region, the real test lies in translating the theme—”Ports of the Future: Combining Logistical Resilience with Inclusive Community Development” into actionable regional metrics.

As an analyst looking closely at the sub-regional maritime ecosystem, three critical realities must dominate the conversations beyond the official communiques:

THE URGENCY OF TRANSSHIPMENT DOMINATION:

With Dantsoho sitting uniquely as the first Nigerian President of PMAWCA, Nigeria holds the gavel to drive true regional trade integration.

However, the “Ports of the Future” cannot exist merely on paper. While Nigeria boasts massive consumer market leverage, we are in an aggressive race against regional rivals like Lome (Togo), Tema (Ghana), and Abidjan (Cote d’Ivoire) for transshipment supremacy.

PMAWCA must move past administrative reviews and establish unified, automated transshipment protocols that reduce dwell times across West and Central African corridors.

MOVING FROM PORT EFFICIENCY TO COMMUNITY INCLUSION:

The inclusion of “Community Development” in this year’s theme touches on a historic pain point. For decades, Port host communities across West Africa most notably Apapa and Tin Can in Lagos have borne the brunt of logistical friction, gridlock, and environmental degradation without direct socio-economic cushions.

If Ports are truly the “gateways to prosperity,” the policy directions forged in this meeting must mandate a fixed percentage of port-generated revenue to be directly reinvested into local infrastructural resilience and Green Port Initiatives (GPI)

THE DIGITAL INTEGRATION LITMUS TEST:
You cannot build a resilient, future ready Port with manual paperwork and fragmented customs processes.

For the West and Central African sub-region to survive evolving global supply chain shocks, this board meeting must lay a concrete timeline for a unified Regional Port Single Window system.

True maritime cooperation means a vessel moving from Luanda to Lagos or Abidjan should encounter standardized digital clearance architectures.

THE BOTTOM LINE:
Nigeria’s successful hosting of the 43rd PMAWCA Council in 2023 proved we can organize.

The 2026 Board Meeting must prove we can execute. Minister Oyetola and MD Dantsoho have a golden opportunity to steer PMAWCA from a deliberative association into a fierce economic bloc.

The sustainability of the sub-regional economy depends entirely on how quickly we move from standard roundtable rhetoric to aggressive, Modern Port Execution.

While awaiting the outcome of this historic meeting, I wish the Minister a successful outing.

Ibrahim Nasiru is a public affairs analyst and he writes from Abuja