Oluyinka Onigbinde
The Minister of Transportation; Engr Muazu Sambo has promised to disburse the Cabotage Vessel Financing fund (CVFF) before the end of this year.
The minister stated this on Friday during the commissioning of the newly-acquired patrol and passenger ferry boats of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), as part of his working visit to Rivers state.
The Minister who bemoaned the non-disbursement of the fund, assured stakeholders present at the commissioning that he would do everything possible to ensure that the funds are disbursed before the end of the year, describing the CVFF as a low hanging fruit.
He explained that the CVFF was established to build local capacity and help Nigerian ship owners remain in business.
He added that the ministry has already put machinery in place to make sure that the industry takes full benefits of the CVFF before the end of the year.
He said: “I have identified the need for us to build local capacity for Nigerians involved in the maritime business.
“In this regards I am sure the maritime industry wants to know what our position is regarding the Cabotage Vessels Financing fund (CVFF)
“This is a fund that was established under the Cabotage Act in order to build domestic capacity, I want to say it here that it is indeed a low hanging fruits and I will do everything within my power to make sure that the fund is disbursed to Nigerians as quickly as possible, so that Nigerians ship owners can increase their capacity and as well generate wealth here instead of patronising foreign ships owners and money from such business is taken out of Nigeria, rendering us jobless.
“We want to assure the maritime community that we have already put in place machineries to make sure that we take benefits of the CVFF before the end of this year, by the grace of God”, he said
Speaking earlier at the Naval Shipyard in Port Harcourt, the Minister stated that one of the mandates of the ministry and specifically NIMASA is to build local capacity and as well encourage and increased ship ownership by Nigerians.
He urged Nigerians to partner the naval shipyard in enhancing local capacity. “One of the mandates of the ministry and specifically NIMASA is to build local capacity; we are supposed to encourage and increased fleet ownership by Nigerians. The only way you can do that in a sustainable manner is to do it at home.
“We heard the commander said they have the capability to build different platforms, so we should explore the situation where we can partner them so as to achieve this target of enhancing local capacity”, he said.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) says huge opportunities in the nation’s waterways can be maximised if there are infrastructure and proper funding.
The Managing Director, NIWA, Dr George Moghalu, said this in a statement made available to newsmen in Lagos on Saturday.
Moghalu said this during the facility tour and commissioning of the newly acquired two patrol boats (PB-Gusau and PB-Jalingo) and a 32-seater passenger ferry boat by the Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, in Port Harcourt.
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According to him, infrastructure and funding will make the waterways attractive and competitive to players.
He also said that there was need for a regulatory framework aimed at actualising this, which ultimately would take the cost of providing infrastructure on roads to water at relatively cheaper cost.
“As you may be aware, in less than a year ago, the authority commissioned more than 20 patrol boats and a tugboat, houseboat and water ambulance for distribution to various area offices.
“This is part of the authority’s vision to ensure that the nation’s inland waterways provide a truly safe, efficient, cost effective and alternative mode of transportation of goods and persons as well as become competitive and attractive.
“The vision of the authority is also to make Nigeria, the leader in inland waterways transportation, development and management in Africa, hence the need to ensure the development of infrastructural facilities for a national inland waterways network.
“The network will connect the creeks and the rivers with the economic centres using the river ports as nodal points for intermodal exchange,” he said.
Moghalu noted that consequently, NIWA had licensed several companies for transportation of cargo across the waterways, especially from Lagos and Onne Ports to the hinterlands and vice versa.
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