…captures Eastern ports dredging, Apapa, Tin Can Island port rehabilitation
The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola CON, has presented a N10.9billion budget for 2024 for his Ministry to the National Assembly, with dredging of Eastern ports and rehabilitation of Apapa and Tin Can Island ports captured in the budget.
The Minister submitted the budget to the joint House Committees of Senate on Marine Transport and the House of Representatives Committees on Ports and Harbour, Maritime Safety, Education and Administration, Inland Waterways and Shipping services.
Oyetola, while addressing the joint House committees and the Senate at the National Assembly complex in Abuja, stated that the proposed budget will enable the newly created Ministry perform its prime role of oversight and monitoring of the implementation of government policies across agencies under its purview in the marine and blue economy domain.
“You are aware that the 2024 budget is for economic growth, therefore, the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy and its Agencies under the 2024 budget seek to consider and sustain on the achievements and performances recorded in the past years”, the former Osun state governor said.
The 69-year old Minister emphasized that the Ministry will place priority on ports infrastructural development via modernization of the Apapa and Tin Can ports that are currently in a dilapidated state, while also planning to rehabilitate the Eastern ports and equally dredging the inland and coastal waterways.
In order to realize these initiatives, Oyetola encouraged the Committees to appropriate needed funds as proposed in the budget of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) and the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) to facilitate the projects.
He stated that as part of the 2006 Act, enabling concessioning of the ports, the Federal Government still retains ownership of these ports and it behoves on them as landlords to continually ensure that the ports are best maintained and kept in optimal state to enable usage and interest from the concessionaires.
Other focal areas the minister mentioned include; maritime administration, building human capacity, as well as effective technical and economic regulation that will ensure the strengthening of the Blue Economy in Nigeria.
Presenting the Ministry’s budget in company of the Agencies supervised by the Ministry namely Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron and Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), Oyetola informed the committee that the NPA, NIMASA and NSC are fully self-funding and also make reasonable remittances to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF/TSA).
The MAN, Oron, NIWA and the CRFFN derive their funding from the Federal Government’s budget and internally generated revenue. He also made note of the CRFFN’s appropriation for 2023 which was erroneously removed and requested for the matter to be revisited.
Spokesperson for the joint House Committees and the Senate, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Marine Transport, Sen. Wasiu Sanni, in his opening remarks welcome all to the gathering stated that the 2024 budget defence also encompasses performance review for 2023 which would provide adequate and further insight into propositions captured in the 2024 budget proposal.
He assured the Minister of the Heads of the NASS Committees’ commitment of necessary support needed by the maritime sector to perform optimally, as doing this translates to boosting remittances to the federation account and as well the overall gross domestic product (GDP) of the country.
Contributions from different committee members reflected their expectations of the new Ministry with emphasis on attracting more ship calls to the nation’s ports by deepening the draught level of ports and channels, seamless port clearance via cargo scanners, among others.
This information was disseminated in a press statement signed by Olujimi Oyetomi, Director, Press & PR, Marine and Blue Economy Ministry.
