Twenty-four littoral African countries under the aegis of the “Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA)” converged on Lagos early November to chart a course for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) using the sea ports
By Innocent Chukwu
Between Monday, November 6 and Thursday, November 9, 2023, the 24 countries that make up the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA) gathered at the Lagos Continental Hotel, Victoria Island Lagos for the 43rd Annual Council and 18th Managing Directors’ Roundtable. Nigeria’s hosting of this year’s PMAWCA meeting came on the heels of remarkable improvements recorded by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) in trade facilitation and ease of doing business in Nigerian ports under the leadership of Mohammed Bello Koko, the NPA Managing Director.
This year’s PMAWCA conference which was declared open by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had the theme, “The Role of Ports in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)”. Speaking earlier on the preparedness of Nigeria to host the event as well as its prospects for the nation, the pioneer Minister of the Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, had enthused that, “This gathering of maritime experts is very timely as it is coming when Nigeria is eager to provide the leadership necessary to convert our marine and blue economy potential to actualities in a bid to provide opportunities for our growing youth population”, adding that it was “to demonstrate the premium we place on maximising the emerging opportunities of AfCFTA which is the focal point of the conference, we have given the Nigerian Ports Authority all the support necessary for a flawless hosting”.
Speaking at the event, President Tinubu who was represented by Oyetola, reminded African leaders of the need to prioritise the Blue Economy which he said holds the key to Africa’s prosperity. Tinubu added that the Blue Economy holds great potential for the development of the entire continent and collective prosperity of African nations.
“As a government that believes in the necessity of infusing information technology into public management to aid transparency and ease of doing business processes, we are giving the Nigerian Ports Authority all the backing necessary to fast track the operationalsation of the port community system”, Tinubu said.
The Managing Director of the NPA, Mohammed Bello Koko, in an address at the conference, said, “The opportunities presented by the AfCFTA are substantial. We must work together to eliminate trade barriers, and harness these opportunities for the collective prosperity of our respective national economies”.
Bello Koko also used the occasion to hint that NPA was committed to investing about $1.1 billion in the rehabilitation of all the seaports in the country. Bello Koko said the proposed investment would ensure strong commitment to fortify Nigeria’s trade competitiveness to harness the gains in the Blue Economy.
Speaking on Tuesday, November 7 during a Panel Session at the PMAWCA conference, Bello Koko added that all the seaports in the country needed rehabilitation which necessitated the NPA to be initiating a substantial overhaul of the nation’s port infrastructures, starting with the Tincan Island Port and the Apapa Premier Port in Lagos.
The rehabilitation, the NPA boss said, is aimed at enhancing the physical infrastructure of the ports to enable them accommodate vessels of all sizes and increase the depth at the seaside with the aim to achieve draft depths of up to 14 meters for global competitiveness. Bello Koko also disclosed, “The Authority has automated its collection system and is collaborating with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to introduce a state-of the-art port community system poised to optimize cargo clearance processes”.
