By Danlami Nasir Isah
The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Bashir Jamoh, has said that investment in research would play a major role in harnessing Nigeria’s maritime potentials and pushing forward development in the sector.
He also said that the agency will reopen its Lokoja office as part of efforts to harness the blue economy, enhance collaboration and promote research and development.
The DG said this when he hosted the Executive Secretary of the Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (KADSEMA), Usman Hayatu Mazadu, at NIMASA Head Office in Lagos.
According to Jamoh, “the cardinal principle of opening the NIMASA Lokoja office is to improve on research and development. Our goal is to establish the nexus in maximizing the use of available resources in the nation’s inland waterways and the deep blue waters within 28 states, spanning over 4000 kilometres of inland waters and over 200 nautical miles of ocean resources.
“With the coming of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, the Blue Economy has come to stay and very soon you will see the impact of what we have; in terms of the gains and benefits to grow our Gross Domestic Product (GDP), while improving the well-being of our own economy.”
On his part, Mazadu, while commending NIMASA for the feat achieved so far, also sought for cooperation with the agency in what he called “possible areas.”
In its quest to develop manpower for the nation’s maritime sector, NIMASA has approved the placement of 11,956 seafarers onboard Cabotage vessels from January 2021 to July 2023.
Under the current administration led by Bashir Jamoh, about 3,705 seafarers were placed onboard Cabotage vessels in 2021; 7,238 seafarers in 2022, and 1,013 seafarers in seven months of 2023 (Jan–July).
Also, about 539 seafarers were recommended for placement in the first quarter of 2023.
In terms of registration, 3,219 and 3,619 seafarers were registered in 2021 and 2022 respectively while 1,176 were registered in the seven months of 2023.
Similarly, about 24 MLC 2006 certificates were issued in 2021; 49 MLC 2006 certificates were issued in 2022 and 63 MLC 2006 certificates were issued in 2023. This amounts to 8,014 seafarers registered between 2021 and 2023 July, and 136 MLC 2006 certificates issued within the same period.
Meanwhile, Cabotage manning applications are now processed on the condition that all foreign crew, especially Ratings on board vessels are to be replaced with Nigerian seafarers or cadets within two to three weeks of operations.
With the establishment of the e-registration platform, the agency also digitalizes the registration and documentation of maritime labour including seafarers and dockworkers, maritime labour employers for shipping companies, manning/crewing agents, stevedoring companies, jetties/terminals operators; and operators in bonded terminals, inland container depots, off dock terminals, dry ports offshore platforms in Nigeria.
Presently, 65 stevedoring companies, 26 terminal/jetty operators, and 1,395 dockworkers have been registered within the period under review.
The maritime labour e-registration platform is a robust integrated information, verification, and communication facility that provides real-time information on maritime labour registration processes and operations as well as enables the online registration and verification of documents, and makes the issuance of operational licenses timely.
It also serves as a database from which statistics can be extrapolated for national planning, policy formulation, human and infrastructural development, and research purposes.
NIMASA in 2008 initiated the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) with the sole mandate of training Nigerians to become seafarers and Naval Architects in order to build manpower for the maritime industry.
It was designed to train Nigerians up to degree level in Marine Engineering, Nautical Sciences, and Naval Architecture in the best maritime training institutions abroad to enable them to compete effectively in the global maritime industry.
In December 2022, NIMASA sent forth 235 Nigerians to India and Greece as Batch B of the 435 Nigerians to be trained as Licensed Deck and Engine Officers including Naval Architects under the NSDP in addition to the 200 sponsored under Batch A.