Freight forwarders in the maritime industry have blamed government’s laxity and trade imbalance for the number of empty containers littering at the Lagos Port corridor.
According to report, the number of empties that flood the Lagos Port contribute about 50% to the worsening traffic situation in the approaches to ports.
Recall that the Presidential Task Team (PTT) on the Restoration of Law and Order on the roads in Apapa had called on the federal government in November 2019 to declare a national emergency on empty containers handling at the Lagos ports, with 30 to 60 days’ moratorium to ease the empty container return pressure.
Speaking with our correspondent, the National President of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF); Mr Increase Uche said the number of empties littering the Lagos seaport has continued to increase due to government negligence.
He stated that the government has shown little or no interest in getting it resolved, adding that the imbalance in trade flow has wrecked more havoc, thereby making Nigeria a dumping ground for empty containers
He said the solution to the issue of empty containers requires a systematic approach on how empty containers are repositioned globally.
According to him, “we have been discussing about this issue of empty containers times without number, but it seems the government is not serious about it, because some of the containers have even expired.
“If government is serious with it, the Empties Containers Repositioning (ECR) would have been carried out. What we are suffering today is as a result of the imbalance in trade flow, once the volume of laden containers that come into a country is much, we are bound to suffer the consequences of empty containers management.
“Because, as you are requesting for container, when it is laden; it is you the shipper that is interested in that container, once a container is empty, the shipper is no longer interested in the container, it should be the shipping company that should be interested in those empty containers so as to reposition them for other cargoes coming.
“But that is the major problem, are the shipping companies interested in taking the cargoes back? that has been the problem, it would have been very easy, but for the fact that the country is import driven, there is imbalance in the trade flow.
“The issue of empty container is a global thing and it requires systematic approach on how empty containers are repositioned globally, because of the trade imbalance, we will continue to have these problems,” he said.
The National Secretary of ANLCA; Babatunde Mukaila also blamed the government for being lackadaisical about the problem of empty containers.
He urged the government to intervene by ensuring that all shipping companies provide holding bays that will match the cargo throughput in the country.
“Government has to intervened, there is need for us to have the barge as an option and I talk about additional holding bay, and not just a holding bay, but with a good land mass, the shipping line should have adequate holding bay to match the cargo throughput” he said.
Efforts to get the reaction of the Presidential Task Team as to the level of work done in resolving the challenges posed by the empty containers were abortive as its Vice Chairman was still unreachable as at the time of filing this report.
Discussion about this post