The Ports Consultative Council (PCC) has identified the creation of deep-sea ports in Nigeria as the only solution to the problems of high freight charges which has over the years characterized Nigerian ports, even as it says that it will further bring down the cost of goods at the market.
Chairman of the council, Otunba Kunle Folarin made this statement in Lagos yesterday while speaking to journalists on the sidelines of his visit to the Nigerian Shippers Council.
The Ports Consultative Council (PCC) has identified the creation of deep-sea ports in Nigeria as the only solution to the problems of high freight charges which has over the years characterized Nigerian ports, even as it says that it will further bring down the cost of goods at the market.
Chairman of the council, Otunba Kunle Folarin made this statement in Lagos yesterday while speaking to journalists on the sidelines of his visit to the Nigerian Shippers Council.
Folarin said that Nigeria is the only country without a deep-sea port and that this has placed it in a bad position among other neighboring countries. He also revealed that the PCC has released a comprehensive report which will help out in solving the problem, even from the grassroots.
He pointed out that “Nigeria is the only country without a deep-sea port, in terms of comparative advantage we are not able to actually compete with other ports in west and central Africa in terms of freight cost, the ports are far from the Atlantic and you cannot expects these inland ports to be fully utilized along with those on the coastal corridors”
The veteran maritime consultant said that the Ibaka and Olokola deepsea project which are already on course is a welcomed idea, but he however advised that there is need to fast track the project so that Nigerians in the port industry will be able to achieve a better inventory control.
“Don’t forget that a ship coming to Nigeria will only bring a maximum of 1,000 containers, but other ships going to west and central Africa can bring 3,000 at a time, in terms of economy of scale they will be able to charge lower freight rate to these ports and it will reflect in the cost of manufacturing and also in the cost of finished products in our industry, I believe the deep-sea port is a major change in all the efforts made in bringing down the cost of doing business in Nigeria”
Folarin said that the PCC-compiled report is the outcome of the research it undertook on deep-sea ports in other countries and the lesson for Nigeria. According to him, the report will be sent to the National Planning Commission, Ministry of Transport and all the ministries that are of economic importance to the country.
“Apart from this, we intend to deposit it with the institutions, we have already made contact with Lagos State University (LASU) University of Lagos (UNILAG) and it is going to go to others like FUTA in Akure and FUTO in Owerri, don’t forget that NIMASA is trying to establish a maritime faculty in most of these universities and this report will be of great relevance in their studies”, he stated.
“What we are doing is to make sure that we provide the instrument and the reference that will help Nigerian maritime sector to deal properly with those issues inhibiting their expansion; this is a major breakthrough for the PCC” Folarin said.
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