Connect with us

Maritime Agencies

MAN, ORON: We Blocked Revenue Leakages To Free Funds To Improve Infrastructure and Capacity, Says Rector.

Published

on

Commodore Effedua (middle) receiving the Award

 

 

 

 

By Izuchukwu Ozoemena

 

 

 

 

 

Rector, Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron, Commodore Emmanuel Duja Effedua (Rtd) says infrastructural and capacity development now reigns at the nautical college following conscious efforts in place to block revenue leakages and release funds for very important projects.

 

 

Commodore Effedua stated this  in Lagos, Monday, while receiving an Honorary Fellowship award from the National Association of Master Mariners, NAMM, in recognition of his efforts at growing the maritime manpower capacity at Oron while putting in place landmark reforms in the institution. Former Managing Director of Comet Shipping, Capt Pier Corradano was equally honoured for being an immense financial supporter of NAMM over the years.

 

 

The Rector recalled that one of the first things he did after his appointment was to block the several financial loopholes in a bid to manage revenue at the Academy.

 

 

“As a result of this, I have been called all manner of names and presently have thousands of petitions written against me.  But I’m not perturbed.”

 

 

“We also realized the need to improve on the infrastructure at the Academy as well as the capacity. Today, we have modern world-class simulators, competent trainers and a serene learning environment”

 

 

Expressing gratitude for the award, he referred to it as unique as he had rejected numerous awards in the past.

 

 

“But this one is special and historic”.

 

 

He thanked NAMM for the honour which he said he would value and cherish.

 

 

He said he holds NAMM and its members in high esteem for  contributing to the developments at the Academy in recent years.

 

 

“I want to thank you for your kind recognition for my modest efforts; it has been worthwhile. I have rejected over a 100 awards but this is history being made. l hold all of you dearly and will cherish this award.”

 

 

Speaking, NAMM President, Capt Alao appreciated the Rector’s huge reforms at MAN and the recognitions he is giving to those who deserve them.

 

 

Effedua, he stated,  has transformed the Academy into an institution of national pride.

 

 

“Effedua named roads, buildings and blocks after several Master Mariners at MAN Oron and he did this without anyone lobbying. This shows his regard for the association and its professionals.”

 

 

“Some of our colleagues haven’t been proud to identify themselves as MAN Oron alumni in the past but under the leadership of Commodore Effedua, the story has changed. The Academy has state-of-the-art facilities and there has been a complete turnaround as a result of Effedua’s visionary leadership,” Alao said.

 

 

He lamented the disturbing neglect of the shipping sector despite the immense potentials it offers to the economy. With the right support, he reasoned, the maritime sector can surpass the nation’s crude industry as a contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

 

 

Speaking on the awardees, Capt. Alao observed that the Rector of MAN Oron, Effedua has transformed the Academy into an institution of national pride while he described Capt. Pier Carrodona as an immense financial supporter of the association over the years.

 

 

On inland waterways, Alao said: “We have inland waterways from Lake Chad up to Badagry to Ogoja-Bakassi. We have the coastal waters which is about 600 nautical miles and we have the exclusive economic zone, even as we have international waters.

 

 

“As a nation, we should play our part and take a little bite in all these areas. We know that maritime can contribute immensely to this nation, but we are not developing the inland waterways. Just last week Federal Government said it wants to dredge Orasi River – Oguta. This is coming after several decades. What have we been waiting for? Perhaps, this is because the Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma, has experience in dredging. Imagine the multiplier-effect and the potential economic benefits in that axis from the project?”

 

 

“There are losses due to wasted man-hours in Lagos in the evacuation of cargoes from the ports. The problems on the port access roads will not be there if we have openings with viable ports in other regions. As Master Mariners, we have a lot to inform the incoming government so that they can harness the opportunities within the maritime space.”

 

 

He regretted that more than 40 years ago, Nigeria killed the use of inland waterways from Lagos to Baro to Numan, a legacy inherited from the colonial masters.

 

 

“The inland waterways were used to convey cargoes in the past. But we are not doing that anymore. Insecurity is man- made. We can eliminate it and harness the potentials of the water.”

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Maritime Agencies

Customs Bans Stemming of Containers of Pharmaceutical Products To Bonded Terminals, Hands Over N9.2bn Illegal Importations To NAFDAC

Published

on

By





‎By Izuchukwu Ozoemena




‎Going forward, the Nigeria Customs Service has placed an indefinite ban on  the stemming of containers of pharmaceutical products to bonded terminals. This is official.

‎Customs Controller-General, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi announced this in Lagos, Friday, in response to what he referred to as abuses and trade illegalities being perpetrated by offdock facilities.

‎”We will no longer allow stemming vessels down into offdock facilities. We can allow any other thing but because of the sensitive nature of pharmaceutical products and because of the abuse to which this concession has been subjected in the past, they will only be allowed or cleared in these four designated places: Apapa Port (right inside the port), Onne Port, PTML and at the International Airport. We’ll no longer allow them to be taken into bonded terminals.”

‎The Controller-General who was in Apapa to hand over 25 containers of unregistered and prohibited pharmaceutical products with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N9.2 billion to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) declared the aim of the restriction. This is to curtail the abuse by bonded terminal operators, many of whom have been implicated in the seizure of fake and unwholesome drugs.

‎CGC Adeniyi described the seizure of pharmaceutical products as a direct fallout of the strategic Memorandum of Understanding with NAFDAC and the inauguration of the implementation committee between the two bodies in November 2024.

‎Explaining the  Service’s position regarding current licensing fees, he  stated that the current licensing fees for bonded terminals in operation stand to be reviewed as they no longer align with  current realities, haven been in place for about a decade.

‎”The increase in the fee of the license has to be such that it will be difficult or impossible for those who are not serious to own and operate a bonded terminal.

‎”So, we are already in the process of reviewing the license fee. We will carry the stakeholders along and do things that will reflect current situations”.

‎He acknowledged the role inter-agency collaboration and intelligence-sharing have  continued to play in enforcement.
‎ This enhanced cooperation has delivered measurable results in protecting public health and discouraging illicit trade.

‎”The MOU framework enables Customs and NAFDAC to conduct coordinated operations and joint investigations, systematically tracing illicit pharmaceutical sources and deploying targeted enforcement strategies against criminal networks”.
‎A rundown of the contents of the
‎ 21 forty-foot containers and 4 twenty-foot containers of counterfeit and dangerous pharmaceutical reveals  unregistered sexual enhancement drugs like REDSUN and HYEGRA among others.

‎There are also codeine-containing cough syrups (including CSC brands), antibiotic injections such as oxytetracycline and artesunate, pain relief medications containing diclofenac sodium and paracetamol.

‎Also included are skin-lightening creams, hip and breast enlargement products and
‎numerous tablets bearing fake NAFDAC registration numbers.  Expired food products, veterinary medications and antimalarial drugs also featured.

‎“The Nigeria Customs Service, in partnership with NAFDAC and the NDLEA remains uncompromisingly committed to the battle against merchants of death who pursue illicit profits from businesses that destroy lives and communities,” Adeniyi stressed.

‎“This MOU- facilitated coordination enables swift responses to emerging threats, and I commend the Director-General and her dedicated team whose technical expertise, combined with our enforcement capabilities, has created a formidable barrier against criminal networks seeking to compromise our borders”.

‎“Under the coordination of the Office of the National Security Adviser, our joint operations have resulted in the seizure of over 200 containers followed by coordinated destruction exercises, with unregistered pharmaceutical products comprising 63.7% of seizure values, highlighting the scale of threats that could have inflicted devastating damage on human lives and our social ecosystem if permitted to infiltrate our markets,” he stated.

‎Adeniyi who emphasized that the Service has significantly enhanced her intelligence network and technological capabilities to detect and seize unwholesome goods warned all stakeholders including haulage operators, bonded terminal owners, or any other international trade facilitator that  anyone implicated in illegality stands to face the full force of the law as there are no sacred cows.

‎He commended commended officers and men at the Apapa Port Command for being vigilant and professional in their duties.

Continue Reading

Maritime Agencies

Lekki Deepsea Port Set To Clinch 500,000 TEUs, Becomes Trans-shipment Hub In West Africa

Published

on

By

Yang Xixiong (left) and Daniel Odibe (right) at the media parley, Thursday.





‎By Izuchukwu Ozoemena





‎Yang Xixiong, the Chief Operating Officer, Lekki Port has said the deepsea port which commenced operations in 2023 has come to place Nigeria in her rightful position as a shipping hub that has assumed her rightful position and relevance in regional and global economy.

‎The CEO who disclosed this in Lagos,Thursday, while rubbing minds with members of the press assured that the new port has stabilized and would, going forward,continue to raise the bar of relevance to international standards.

‎“We continue to push the envelope, set the bar higher to uphold our position as West Africa’s deepest sea port,” Xixiong announced.

A section of critical facilities at the Lekki Deepsea Port.

‎“The result of our unrelenting commitment to world-class standards is visible in the gigantic footprints we are putting on the map of maritime trade in Africa, deploying technology, driving operational efficiency, and shaping regional trade,” he added.

‎Already, Lekki Port has commenced trans-shipment operations to some regional ports in West  Africa such as Togo, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.

‎In his intervention, Daniel Odibe, Deputy Chief Operating Officer, who spoke further on the increase in trans-shipment  capacity added that recently, Lekki Deepsea Port conducted a trial trans-shipment to Onne Port.
‎Odibe said, “We had our first trans-shipment operations in 2023, which is the first in the Nigerian economy.

‎Between January and June, 2025, the port processed 222,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) of cargo and has her hands steadily on the plough to jerk up the performance so as to achieve the targetted record of 500,000 TEUs by the end of the year, a development that reflects a growing confidence in the port’s ability to achieve maximum operational capacity as per international standards.

‎“Before now, countries like Togo, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire used to be the trans-shipment hubs for Nigeria-bound cargoes. You know what that means for our cargo? They spend more time coming to us. They incur more costs because they are double-handled in those trans-shipment hubs, all because Nigeria didn’t have a deep-sea port.


‎”The story is in our favour right now. We are now talking about international trans-shipment. We are now doing international trans-shipment to other West African countries such as Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Abidjan, Togo and Cotonou.

‎”Currently, you have ports like Warri, Calabar, Onne, and then we have inland ports like Onitsha and Burutu. Some of these ports, foreign vessels don’t go there because the draft is low. So the idea here is to have cargoes for those ports. That will open up economic opportunities in those areas.

‎“We did some trials last year with Onne. It had some challenges, but again, it was an eye-opener and we are looking at restarting that again this year in collaboration with the shipping lines and baggage operators.”

‎On cargo throughput volume, Odibe assured that cargo volumes are now gradually improving steadily despite initial hiccups arising from instability in the rate of the Dollar.

‎Currently, the port receives between 10-12 vessels every month. The record, he added, is steadily picking up.

‎“Volumes fell because of Naira depreciation and the removal of fuel subsidy; this caused a setback in our projection. As of 2023, when we started operations, we did 54,289 TEUs, and as of June of this year, we have done 222,000, and we are projecting 500,000 TEUs.”

‎Odibe also stated that the vessel turnaround time at Lekki Port currently stands at 48 hours as against one hour and 25 minutes for truck turnaround time, while cargo dwell time is 16 days.





Continue Reading

Maritime Agencies

MAMAL 2025: MARAN Demands End to War Risk Premium, Set to Expose Maritime Fraud in Gulf of Guinea.

Published

on

By





‎By Izuchukwu Ozoemena




‎Come August 28, 2025, the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (MARAN) will host the 3rd edition of her annual Maritime Lecture (MAMAL) at the prestigious Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos.

‎This year’s lecture will spotlight the ongoing international fraud perpetrated by foreign shipping lines under the guise of “War Risk Premiums” on vessels calling at Nigerian ports, aiming to draw the Federal Government’s urgent attention to the issue.

‎Speaking on the theme of MAMAL 2025 which is “Addressing the Burden of War Risk Insurance on Nigerian Maritime Trade,”MARAN President, Mr. Godfrey Bivbere, strongly condemned the war risk insurance, describing it as an international fraud burdening the economy of Nigeria and other developing countries in the Gulf of Guinea.

‎The extra war risk insurance (WRI) levied on Nigeria-bound vessels varies significantly. For instance, a very large crude carrier (VLCC) can incur a WRI surcharge of $445,000 per voyage, while a new container vessel may face a charge of $525,000 per voyage. Beyond this, some shipping companies such as Maersk, have introduced additional fees like a transit disruption surcharge, while others impose a war risk surcharge of $40-$50 per 20-foot container.

‎MARAN contends that these exorbitant charges are further strangulating Nigeria’s already-strained economy.

‎Also, despite Nigeria’s Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola recently confirming that Nigeria has not recorded a single pirate incident in the past three years, the imposition of war risk premiums continues unabated.

‎Oyetola credits this peace in the Gulf of Guinea to the multi-billion naira Deep Blue Project, a robust maritime security initiative spearheaded by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

‎Despite these commendable efforts by the Federal Government, MARAN is concerned that foreign shipping lines continue to unjustly extract millions of dollars from Nigerian shipowners in the name of War Risk Insurance Premium, even though there are no demonstrable risks in the region.

‎In March 2025, Dr. Dayo Mobereola, Director General of NIMASA, met with a delegation from the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, led by Kristin Skov-Spilling, where he passionately appealed to the international community to acknowledge Nigeria’s significant progress in securing its waters. He emphasized the critical need for a corresponding reduction in war risk insurance costs.
‎Dr. Mobereola stated, “The Nigerian government has demonstrated a strong commitment to maritime security, leading to nearly zero incidents of piracy and armed robbery in the Gulf of Guinea over the past four years. Despite this, vessels coming to Nigeria continue to pay high war risk premiums, which is unjustifiable given the improved security landscape.”

‎Speaking further on the upcoming MAMAL Annual Maritime Lecture 2025, MARAN President Godfrey Bivbere asserted that international shipping companies operating in Nigeria have shown “lackadaisical and complacent attitude towards the economic and social wellbeing of Nigeria as a nation.”

‎He explained that MAMAL 2025 aims to thoroughly examine the perceived threats, realities, and profound implications of persistent Extra War Risk Insurance (EWRI) on Nigeria’s maritime trade and the wider Gulf of Guinea (GoG).

‎Providing more details about the highly anticipated conference, which has consistently served as a crucial rallying point for all maritime stakeholders due to MARAN’s respected voice, Bivbere added:
‎”The Summit will also explore issues leading to the classification of the nation’s waters as high-risk zones, roles of classification societies like the Lloyds of London, the roles of core stakeholders like NIMASA, Nigerian Navy and other maritime and security operators.”

‎According to Bivbere, “The MAMAL 2025 is expected to draw over 500 key stakeholders, including maritime security experts, shipowners, terminal operators, international shipping lines, diplomats, insurers, regulators, and legal experts.”

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Maritime Agencies3 days ago

Customs Bans Stemming of Containers of Pharmaceutical Products To Bonded Terminals, Hands Over N9.2bn Illegal Importations To NAFDAC

Maritime Agencies3 days ago

Lekki Deepsea Port Set To Clinch 500,000 TEUs, Becomes Trans-shipment Hub In West Africa

Maritime Agencies5 days ago

MAMAL 2025: MARAN Demands End to War Risk Premium, Set to Expose Maritime Fraud in Gulf of Guinea.

Maritime Agencies6 days ago

Apapa Customs Revives Rail Haulage of Cargo, Shuts Three Bonded Terminals

Maritime Agencies6 days ago

SAFETY ON WATER: FG Donates Life Jackets To Ogun State Government, Emphasizes Safety

Maritime Agencies6 days ago

Dangote Lauds NPA’s One-Stop Shop Committee, Donates Coaster Bus To Ease Operations

Maritime Agencies7 days ago

Release Approved N200bn Capital Projects Fund To MAN, Oron, House of Representatives Charges NIMASA .

Maritime Agencies1 week ago

NPA Berths Nigerian-Owned Container Vessel,”MV OCEAN DRAGON,” To Boost Incountry and Regional Trade,

Maritime Agencies1 week ago

NIGERIAN PORTS AUTHORITY BERTHS FIRST WHOLLY NIGERIAN-OWNED CONTAINER VESSEL.

Maritime Agencies2 weeks ago

HALF-YEAR REVENUE DISPOSITION: Apapa Customs Hits N1.38Trillion, ‎Confiscates Prohibited Goods Worth Billions.

Maritime Agencies3 weeks ago

PORTBIZNESS Celebrates Excellence in Customer Service Delivery, Holds Special Awards Night

Maritime Agencies3 weeks ago

Kebbi Customs Command Introduces Health Screening, Mandatory Sports To Ensure Work-life Balance

Maritime Agencies4 weeks ago

CG Adeniyi Commends Ogun II Command for Massive Revenue Increase. ‎

Maritime Agencies1 month ago

Container Movement To Seaports: NPA Meets With APM Terminals, Shipping Lines, for Coordination.

Maritime Agencies1 month ago

ANTI-SMUGGLING OPERATIONS: FOU, Zone ‘A’ Ups the Ante, Confiscates Bulletproof Vests, Cannabis Sativa,etc, worth N1.2bn

Maritime Agencies2 months ago

INLAND WATERWAYS SAFETY: Oyetola Flags Off 3,500 Life Jacket Distribution Campaign in Lagos.

Maritime Agencies3 years ago

APFFLON Seeks Immediate Reform of CRFFN, Replacement of Registrar.

Maritime3 years ago

OMIS AWARDS, 2022: Greg Ogbeifun, Industry Gurus For Special Recognition.

Maritime Agencies2 years ago

FG Set To Re-establish National Shipping Line, To Take Advantage of $10 bn Annual Ship Charter Market.

Politics2 years ago

2023 ELECTIONS:CILT Hosts Seminar on Logistics & Electoral Process

Maritime Agencies3 years ago

INLAND WATERWAYS OFFERS NIGERIA ALTERNATIVE REVENUE SOURCE, Says Sambo

Maritime Agencies3 years ago

MAN, ORON: It’s Encomiums Galore From International Seabed Authority (ISA).

Photospeak3 years ago

Photo News: Salah Celebration

Maritime Agencies2 years ago

MAN, Oron, Kick-starts Simulator-based Training, Commends FG, NIMASA.

Transport3 years ago

MUAZU SAMBO: Showcasing Nigeria’s Maritime Potentials At The Global Arena

Maritime Agencies4 months ago

Lilypond Export Command Is Meeting Expectations, Handles 70% of Nigeria’s Total Tonnage of Export Cargo, says CAC Odusanya.

Photospeak3 years ago

PHOTO NEWS: Maritime Capacity Development

Shipping Position2 years ago

BENIN SEAPORT UPDATE: Edo State Government, Host Communities, Conduct Bidders To Inspect Project Site.

Customs2 years ago

MARAN Salutes DCG Adeniyi On His Elevation  As Customs Comptroller-General.

Oil & Gas3 years ago

WAR AGAINST OIL THEFT: Tompolo’s Company Nabs VLCC Laden With Crude Oil

Business2 years ago

SIFAX GROUP: Ojeniyi Becomes Sky Capital GMD, Omajuwa Strategy Director.

Maritime Agencies3 years ago

PUBLIC RELATIONS:  New Image Maker Mounts the Saddle at NPA.

Advertisement
Realtime Website Traffic

Trending