PORT HARCOURT – REAL estate expert, My-ACE China, has urged the media in Rivers state to beam more light on investment opportunities and the renewed commitment to ease of doing business in the state under Governor Siminalayi Fubara.

China was addressing stakeholders at the 2024 Energy and Maritime Reporters’ (EMR) of the Rivers State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) during their 2024 Seminar and Awards held in Port Harcourt.

The seminar was themed, ‘Understanding the Maritime Subsector and Issues in the Coastal States’, with sub theme, ‘Maritime Safety Concerns and Approaches’.

China, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Housing and Construction Mayor Limited, initiators of Alesa Smart City in Eleme, expressed satisfaction that a wing of Rivers NUJ gives exclusive attention to the Blue Economy in Rivers.

He expressed delight at the EMR Best Maritime Reporter award sponsored by the Dr Emi-Membere-Otaji Foundation, adding that it aligns with his desire for journalists to be encouraged to push deeper in reporting different segments of Rivers economy.

“Businesses and investors in the state should encourage more media excellence awards and support journalists in Rivers at this point in time to focus on promoting peace and attracting investments against negative developments that tend to paint the state as a place of war”, the Mayor of Housing emphasised.

The National Vice President, Nigeria Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Dr. Emi Membere-Otaji, infomed that the Niger Delta, constituting more than 70% of Nigerian coastline, has enough human and logistics resources to lead the maritime industry.

Dr Membere-Otaji whose marine firm, Elshcon Nigeria Limited, bagged the industry award of the year, advocated use of locally-made and manned flat-bottomed tugboats to move containers off Apapa Port in Lagos to other pickup points where trucks could load them to evade the intractable traffic gridlocks experience with trucking from Lagos.

Stakeholders on the occasion raised concern over alarming rate of accidents and casualties in Nigeria’s maritime domain, calling for concerted efforts at curbing the trend.

Chairman of the occasion, Dr Daniel Tamunodukobipi, National Chairman, Nigeria Institute of Marine Engineers and Naval Architects (NIMENA) and lecturer at the Rivers State University, expressed worry over appointment of non-professionals in sensitive maritime certification positions.

He said this has “brought ridicule to the Nigerian maritime industry from around the world as accidents at sea can be reduced if certification and supervision were carried out properly by experts and professionals.”

The Chairman NUJ Rivers Council, Stanley Jobs Stanley, called for more media spotlight on maritime institutions and operations in the oil region, noting that directing all attention to Lagos does not augur well for the industry.

Martins Giadom, Chairman EMR, said the objective of the seminar was to spur aggressive training of maritime reporters in the coastal areas.

He commended the Dr Emi Membere-Otaji Foundation for sponsoring the award series for best maritime reporter while acknowledging the Mayor of Housing for the support in making the seminar a success.