As Shippers Council boss commends NEPC

By Emeka Anaeto, Business Editor and Godfrey Bivbere

There are indications that the measures put in place by the Port Standing Task Team, PSTT, to clear the port access roads at the Apapa-Ijora end of the ports corridor have started yielding results, recording drastic reduction in turn-around time for cargo movements in the ports, especially the export terminals.

This has also led to sharp increase in the volume of export in the first half of 2022, H1’22.
The PSTT was created by the Nigerian Shippers Council, NSC, to eradicate the perennial congestion at the access corridors around the nation’s sea ports.

Findings by Vanguard at the Apapa Ports command of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, show that volume of export was 2.5 million tons in the first half of 2022, H1’22, about 363 percent higher than 540,000 tons recorded in the corresponding period of 2021.

The Free On Board, FOB, value was $138 million (N6.21 billion), about 762.5 percent above the $1.6 million (N720 million) recorded in the same period last year.

The Tin-can Island Port recorded export at 138,246.5 metric tons, about 37.6 percent rise against the 100,500 metric tons recorded in 2021. The FOB value in H1’22 is recorded at N100.4 billion representing an increase of 51.4 per cent compared to N66.3 billion recorded in 2021.

Officers at the NCS attributed to sharp increases in volume of export to smooth cargo access to the export terminals at the ports during the period.

Speaking to Vanguard in his office on the development, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council, NSC, Emmanuel Jime, said that the ease in cargo delivery at the export terminals of the ports was a result of the efforts of the PSTT since this year.

Jime said that driving in and out of Apapa which use to take several weeks for export cargo, can now be done in a day.
He stated: “In the last few months the work that the PSTT has done in the port access corridor cannot be under-estimated. For so many years this has not happened; but now you can drive in and out of the ports with ease.’’ 

Jime also added, ‘‘I recognize the efforts of the Nigerian Export Promotions Council, NEPC for their collaboration with us, for instance, we are working with them in the establishment of Domestic Export Warehouses, DEWs.’’