Why Nigeria must focus more on maritime sector – NIMASA DG

The economic benefits of the seas and oceans were the main issue discussed at 2019 African Day of the Seas and Oceans (ADSO) organized by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) held in Lagos recently with the theme: Harnessing Nigeria’s Marine Biodiversity for Accelerated Economic Growth.

In his welcome address, Director General of NIMASA, Dr. Dakuku Peterside explained that the global community are now looking at seas, oceans for economic prosperity.

He said the sustainability of diverse marine species which abound in African seas and oceans is not only important to Africans, but also of a direct economic benefit to Nigeria as a nation.

“According to an Economist Intelligence Unit Report, China’s ocean economy contributed US$962bn, or 10% of GDP, in 2014, employing 9m people. The United States similarly valued its ocean economy at US$258bn in 2010, or 1.8% of GDP.

“These statistics underscore the inherent and diverse opportunities which Nigeria can as a nation can use for rapid economic transformation and development,” he added.

“The need for government and critical stakeholders here present today, to put in place measures which would facilitate and promote sustainable use, protection and preservation of the abundant resource in Nigeria’s Seas and Oceans cannot be over emphasized.”

He said NIMASA remains committed to the prioritization of the blue economy as a veritable tool for economic development, improved livelihoods and job creation; while preserving the health of the ocean ecosystem.

Earlier in his own remark, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transport, Sabiu Zakari, said the discussion could not have come at a better time than now when awareness is being created on African seas and oceans and bringing visibility to the work of the African Union in the maritime sector.

He said in other to address the challenges of insecurity in the country’s waters, President Muhammadu Buhari had assented to the Suppression of Piracy and other Maritime Offences Bill 2019.

This, Zakari said could not have come at a better time than now as issues of maritime insecurity in our waters will now be tackled effectively, leaving our maritime environment safer for the seafarers and marine species with a consequential attraction of more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to the Nation’s economy.

“The seas and oceans around us are gaining new found importance as each day goes by and there is no doubt that the current century is the “century of seas and oceans”. Nigeria has enormous wealth of seas and oceans- based resources with significant potentials that are key for “Harnessing Nigeria’s Marine Biodiversity for Accelerated Economic Growth”.

“In this regard, Federal Ministry of Transportation has also set up an inter-Ministerial/agency committee to come up with implementation strategies for the Blue Economy Policy to provide a platform for the protection and sustainable exploitation of our ocean resources,” he added.

In her keynote address, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Winifred Ekanem Oyo-Ita explained that the maritime industry is key to Nigeria’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) 2017 – 2020.

“Nigeria has enormous potential for economic growth and prosperity by enhancing its economy through significant increase of economic activities around fisheries, aqua culture, marine tourism, development of ports and terminals, intra city water borne transportation; which would help create jobs, reduce poverty and diversify our economic base.

“It is therefore expected that this meeting will discuss and agree on the mechanisms that would fast-track the implementation of the AIM strategies and also serve as a veritable platform for interaction and cross fertilization of ideas on effective procedure for monitoring and evaluation of the processes to guard against poor or non-implementation of the African Union concepts,” she added.