The impending restructuring of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) will only involve the redeployment of personnel to appropriate departments and units and not the downsizing of the workforce as being erroneously interpreted, so says the managing director of Nigerian Ports Authiourity, Engr. Omar Sulaiman Sulaiman gave this assurance and clarification in Lagos last week when he received a delegation from the Shippers Association of Nigeria (SAN) also said that at the completion of the restructuring exercise, the ports will be charged with more operational responsibilities; adding that appropriate measures will be taken to ensure that decisions are made at port level to enhance rapid response to operational exigencies. While pledging his continuous support and cooperation with the association, Sulaiman implored members who are mostly representatives of multinational shipping companies in Nigeria to assist the government in reducing the cost of doing shipping business in the country, in view of the volume of trade in and out of Nigeria. According to him, with what the NPA is doing to improve navigation in the channel through dredging and removal of wrecks as well as improved channel management, the government expects a reciprocal move by providers of shipping services by reducing the cost of shipping into the country. On the planned restructuring the managing director said NPA has adequate trained manpower and resources, but regretted that there was the need to redeploy them to appropriate departments and units to ensure operational results and efficiency in the system. “With the size that we have, if we are to consider the job that we are supposed to do with the terminal operators and do it as required, I cannot say that we are in excess to requirements for now. Only that there are certain departments that need re-training and re-skilling so that the personnel can acquire appropriate skills to enable them cope with their new challenges” he explained. Engr. Sulaiman pointed out that when the new structure comes on stream, it would empower the ports to be able to take some decisions that do not have to come to the headquarters, adding that this was necessary in order to hasten quick operational decisions in the system. He promised to establish a super structure capable of achieving fast response time to issues On the need to foster a more cordial relationship with SAN, the NPA boss who assured members of the association that he would ensure a regular monthly and quarterly formal meeting with them and other stakeholders. Such fora, he said, would serve to identify any problems in the system, with a view to jointly solving them. Earlier, the leader of the SAN delegation Mr. Val Usifoh who congratulated the Managing Director on his well deserved appointment had told him that the SAN would wish to see more aggressive implementation of resolutions of past meetings between it and the agency. Assuring that the association was ready to partner with NPA at all times for the betterment of the industry, the SAN chairman also assured that if all stakeholders did what is expected of them, most of the identified problems in the industry would be solved, and suggested that the Managing Director should empower his subordinates to fast track decision process in the system.
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