Nigeria loses $86bn annually to foreign freight dominance – Shipowners

Nigerian shipowners have said the country is losing about $86bn annually to foreign dominance in the freight forwarding business.

They said the Federal Government’s inaction and unfriendly policies had stifled the growth of local operators, resulting in the county’s loss of billions of dollars in revenue to foreign-dominated shipping operations.

Speaking at the 16th Marine and Technical Summit of the Association of Marine Engineers and Surveyors in Lagos, the Managing Director of Genesis Shipping, Capt Emmanuel Iheanacho, said Nigeria’s losses far exceed the initially reported figure of $9.2bn when petroleum product freight is factored into the calculation.

He said, “When you look at the carriage of our crude oil programme, Nigeria is losing more than $9.2bn. We are losing over $86bn annually to foreign vessels’ dominance of our freight business,” Iheanacho said.

The Chairman of Starzs Investments Company Limited, Greg Ogbeifun, while also expressing concerns, stated that Nigeria’s freight trade is dominated by foreign vessels due to a lack of indigenous capacity and support from the government.

Presenting a paper titled, ‘What is militating against the resurgence of Nigerian global trading?’, Ogeifun noted that Nigeria’s geographical location along the Atlantic Coastline grants the country a lot of access to shipping operations, making Nigeria a crucial hub for marine activities.

According to him, the country has a growing demand for shipping services, but the government has not made it possible for indigenous operators to own ships.

He mentioned that this has made Nigeria completely rely heavily on foreign ships to move her goods.

“Conservatively, Nigeria is losing about $9.2bn to foreign vessels dominance of her trade. We are the ones paying that money to the foreign vessel owners,” he said.

Ogbeifun added that every Nigerian who imports or exports is paying hugely.

He said the country currently generates about 70 per cent of the total cargo between the West and Central African regions.

“When you look at Apapa Port, Tincan Port, Warri Port, Onne Port, and the newly-established Lekki Port; all these ports are relevant in the carriage of Nigerian imports and export trade.

“It, however, breaks my heart that every time I look at our ports, all the quays and jetties are filled up with ships, but not one of these ships is owned by any Nigerian.”

Ogbeifun also highlighted the struggles of local shipping pioneers like Capt Emmanuel Ihenacho, Chief Isaac Jolapamo, and Temisan Omatseye, who bought ships in the past but whose businesses were killed by the system.

“There are challenges that have made it very impossible for this country, since the demise of the Nigerian National Shipping Line in 1995 to own ships.

“I don’t think our leaders need a prophet to tell them that they need to be in a hurry to ensure Nigerians participate in her shipping freight, “he said.

Ogbeifun, who also serves as the Chairman of the Benin Port Project Technical Committee, urged the government to put in place policies that would encourage Indigenous shipping operators to compete with foreign vessel owners, who he said enjoy zero duty and near-zero tax regimes.

“The enabling policies need to be implemented. How can Nigerians compete with foreign vessel owners who enjoy zero duty and a near-zero tax regime? It is time our leaders provide policies that encourage indigenous shipping in this country,” he said.