Insecurity hurting Nigeria’s transport industry, say stakeholders

Key players in the transportation industry   have raised concerns over the growing security challenges in the sector while calling for an urgent intervention to save it from collapse.

Speaking at the ongoing National Transport Summit of the Chartered Institute of Transport Administration of Nigeria, the Chairman of the event, Julius Adeluyi, said the transportation modes in Nigeria had been altered following the invasion of the transport space by criminals across the country.

He said the aim of the summit was to address the issues of transportation modes and terminals as vectors of threats to safety and security.

The Executive Secretary, Nigerian Shippers Council, Emmanuel Jime, said that shippers were paying high freight on goods coming to Nigerian ports due to poor security rating of the country, adding that cargoes which are supposed to go to the Eastern ports (Calabar and Port Harcourt) are being diverted to Lagos ports due to the high rate of insecurity in the Niger-Delta waterways.

He further said that this  leads to high freight differential between the Lagos Ports and Eastern ports as shipping firms slam war risk insurance premium on the cargoes.

Meanwhile the Director General Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, Bashir Jamoh noted that NIMASA’s Deep Blue Project was to improve security in Nigeria’s waters and to reduce the payment of war risk insurance by ships coming to Nigerian Ports.

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