By Godfrey Bivbere

LAGOS—THE Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, and shipowners, under the aegis of Ship Owners Association of Nigeria, SOAN, are at daggers drawn  over the disbursement of the N100 billion Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund, CVFF.

While the minister has refused to disburse the fund, shipowners, on the other hand, have warned that unless the fund was disbursed, local cabotage fleet might be completely depleted.

The CVFF is a two per cent contribution by indigenous shipowners for every contract they execute and is meant for the development of the cabotage fleet and local shipping capacity.

Rotimi Amaechi

The minister had told shipowners at their end of year workshop and dinner, saying “I will not disburse the CVFF funds.”

He explained further that he would not disburse the funds because the shipowners were looking for free money, stressing that a similar lifeline given to operators in the aviation industry was diverted to other areas, different  from the purpose the fund was disbursed.

He, however, denied claims that funds in the CVFF had exceeded the N100 billion mark because the previous management of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, spent a large chunk of the funds on building maritime institutions.

However, President of SOAN, Greg Ogbeifun, lamented that the Cabotage fleet in the country had greatly depleted since the decline in prices of petroleum products that had affected the International Oil Companies, IOCs, with who they do business.

He said:  “Despite contributing two per cent of their contract values to the infamous CVFF, a fund meant to finance and grow the Cabotage fleet, the fund has never financed a single vessel since inception over 10 years ago.

“Most shipowners approached the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, which warehouses the CVFF to intervene by refinancing the more expensive commercial bank loans for low interest Cabotage fund. Up till now, there had been no response from NIMASA.

“If the CVFF had been used to intervene in the situation shipowners found themselves, our tonnage would have grown or at worst, been sustained.”

On the minister’s claim that the CVFF didn’t not have as much as N100 billion, Ogbeifun said: “The Chairman, House Committee on Maritime Safety, Education and Administration, Mohammed Umar Bago, stated in October that Nigeria has over N100 billion in the CVFF account.”

The SOAN president further pointed out that even if the amount in the account had been depleted as the minister claims, what was left should be used to support shipowners.

He stressed that unlike the aviation fund which was from government, the CVFF was  contribution from them for the development of shipping capacity and, therefore, should be disbursed in accordance with the CVFF law.