Nigeria: Govt Commits to Scaling Up Nigeria's Global Port Rating

30 October 2023
Vanguard (Lagos)
By Godwin Oritse

The federal government, FG, through the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy has expressed its commitment to scaling up Nigeria's port rating in the global maritime space.

Disclosing this intention at the commissioning of the Mission to Seafarers (MTS) centre in Lagos, earlier in the week, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, said the move is apt especially with increasing global competition which has become imperative for nations to make conscious efforts to deepen the competitiveness of their ports. He added that improving Nigeria's balance of trade which is crucial to strengthening the value of the Naira and creating employment, is top on President Bola Tinubu's policy agenda, stressing that given the pivotal role that the maritime sector plays in actualising the noble objective, the ministry under his leadership is determined to equip seafarers and all maritime workers with the enabling tools to tackle and overcome work-related challenges.

He added: "This is part of our concerted effort to ensure the maximisation of the comparative advantages that our maritime resources present. The reconstruction of this MTS facility will undoubtedly scale up Nigeria's rating in the global maritime community.

"I was highly elated when I received the report of the commissioning of this Seafarers' Center by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA). My joy is rooted in the realisation that this purpose-built facility, designed to provide vital social, psychological, and emotional support to the crewmen and women who drive global trade in and out of Nigeria, signposts the seriousness of the President Bola Tinubu's administration in enhancing the maritime sector to add greater value to the national economy."

Also speaking, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko, said that with over 90 per cent of global trade which accounts for half of the world's economic output constituting an important economic driver that helps to spur development and reduce poverty going by sea, every member of the maritime and indeed the global community is directly or indirectly a beneficiary of the service of seafarers.

Read the original article on Vanguard.

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