ISPS Code:

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has assured local and international business community that it is on course in the match to make all port facilities in Nigeria to be in full compliance with the International Ships and Ports  facility Security (ISPS) Code.
The agency, in a reaction to developments arising from a statement issued in Lagos last week by the United States of America about the level of compliance of port facilities in Nigeria said that, the statement, which was misconstrued as a sanction was largely untrue.

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has assured local and international business community that it is on course in the match to make all port facilities in Nigeria to be in full compliance with the International Ships and Ports  facility Security (ISPS) Code.
The agency, in a reaction to developments arising from a statement issued in Lagos last week by the United States of America about the level of compliance of port facilities in Nigeria said that, the statement, which was misconstrued as a sanction was largely untrue.
It said that, in actual fact, the United States Government has confirmed that 13 more port facilities in Nigeria are now fully compliant, bringing the total number of compliant port facilities in the country to 22; an increase of 11 since the last visit of the United States Coast Guard.
According to a statement which was sent to Shipping Position Daily, NIMASA quoted the US government as acknowledging the efforts of the agency in raising the security levels of ships and port facilities in Nigeria and assured of its commitment to continue to partner with Nigeria to improve security measures.
 
The Director General of NIMASA, Ziakede Patrick Akpobolokemi was also quoted to have assured that, notwithstanding the agency’s steady progress in achieving total compliance, “it will continue to work tirelessly on all identified improvement opportunities while strengthening our consultation with the USCG with the goal of achieving full ISPS Code compliance, and the removal of the Conditions of Entry (COE) as we crave the cooperation and support of everyone to ensure an ISPS Code compliant nation”.
 
The statement added that, “the United States Coast Guard affirmed its commitment to work with the Agency to ensure that the Nigerian Ports are ISPS Code compliant. According to Lt. Commander Chad Fait, the Port Security Liaison Officer of the USCG for Europe and Africa “after meeting the dedicated men and women at NIMASA, the ICIC team and Permanent Secretary Emodi, I am confident that you have the right people in place and the support from the Government of Nigeria to reach your objective, and I look forward to working with you in the coming years”, the NIMASA statement added.
It also emphasised that, there was no course for alarm about the US Coast Guard verdict that some port facilities are not yet compliant, adding that, the Conditions of Entry (COE) which have been imposed on vessels originating or calling from non-compliant ports in Nigeria, only meant that such ships will be subjected to further security checks before being allowed into ports in the United States of America.
 
According to NIMASA, “the United States Embassy in a diplomatic note earlier issued to the Nigerian Government had acknowledged that although Nigeria may be facing significant difficulty in instituting the needed security measures, the progress Nigeria has made so far is well noted and the clear delineation of NIMASA as the Designated Authority is a positive step”.
 
The Diplomatic Note also clarified that, “the COE are not trade sanctions and do not ban Nigerian ships from entering US Ports. It does require ships however, to take certain additional security related measures while at non-exempt Nigerian ports facilities.
 
The NIMASA explained further that “The COE has no impact on shipping traffic entering Nigerian waters and/or berthing at its ports; it deals only with shipping traffic departing Nigerian ports that is destined for the United States”.
 
The agency also clarified that: “It must be noted that the report of the United States Embassy is based on assessments carried out by the USCG over the last six years and before the last official assessment of August 2013, barely two months after NIMASA took over ISPS Code implementation in Nigeria as the Designated Authority in May 2013. However, a lot of progress has been achieved since the last official assessment visit of the USCG (about 9 months ago) which should show that the compliant ports are actually more than the 22 reported.
 
It stressed that prior to its formal notification as the Designated Authority for the implementation of the ISPS code on May 21, 2013, there were less than 10 port facilities that had effective anti-terrorism measures in place which number has more than doubled one year after.
Shipping Position Daily recalls that the US had in a statement issued last Thursday, disclosed that only 22 Nigerian port facilities are fully compliant. Vessels calling on others are required to have ‘Conditions of Entry’.
“This requires these Nigerian vessels to meet certain security measures prior to entering U.S. ports.
It, however, said that the COE was not meant as trade sanctions or ban on Nigerian ships from entering U.S. ports.
The statement added that COE was also to make Nigerian ships to have additional security measures while non-exempt Nigerian port facilities were to be verified by the U.S. Coast Guard.