IMO: Nigeria to strategize on wining slot at Council

…As NIMASA synergizes with agric ministry to curb illigal fishery, NDLEA on fight against illicit drugs

By Ezurike Ugochukwu

The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency(NIMASA), Dr. Bashir Jamoh has mapped out water-tight Strategies that will eventually help Nigeria win a seat on the council of the International Maritime Organisation(IMO).

Jamoh affirmed that the country will aggressively engage in correcting negative impressions created about the country as well as increase bilateral relations with IMO member countries.

IMO member countries

Like never before, foot-soldiers he said will be dispatched to countries to engage them and also engage International media in this project.

The NIMASA boss who stated this during a media parley he had with Journalists last weekend recalled that the country has intensified efforts at ensuring improved maritime security, raising safety standards on Nigerian waterways in line with IMO regulations, and achieving a pollution-free marine environment.

Jamoh said, “We will continue to advertise what we are doing in the international media for them to read and see.

“We also have to increase our technical support. We have to understand, what are the programmes of IMO in the next three to four years. Nigeria will take a stand; look at thier programmes; prepare technical bills on why and how we want IMO to be.

“With these, we will remain in the mind of IMO member states.We will put an indelible mark in thier own hearts to remove that negative impression and perception from their minds and continue to build on the good things we are doing.

“It’s very easy to destroy but it’s not easy to build. We have been having a very rowdy situation in this country from so many fronts. But we are trying to rebuild the country, it’s not going to be easy, Rome was not built in a day, but that’s not enough excuse.”

Jamoh said as part of his efforts to improve maritme security that will at the end impact the economy, NIMASA will collaborate with governmemt agencies to improve maritime security and safety.

Stating it has signed an agreement with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency(NDLEA), in exploring the deep blue assets in the fight against illicit drugs.

Such collaboration he maintained will make for easy inspection of vessels suspected of involvement in illicit drugs.

The DG stated, “Similarly, we had discussion with Minister of Agriculture on the need to liaise with the department of fisheries to see how we can arrest the situation of illegal and unauthorized fishing in our own waters.

“We are also in Collaboration with Nigerian Customs on the issue of proliferation of small arms and importation of illegal arms.

“All these to ensure we have 360 degrees security in our own water ways.”

Jamoh said the country is determined to take regional leadership in the maritme space having won the Maritme Organizaion for West and Central Africa(MOWCA), election that has elluded the country since it’s establishment in 1975.

Aliukwu MOWCA Secretary-General

“Am happy we were unable to make it to IMO election, but we made it to become the secretary general of MOWCA,” he enthused.

Speaking further on the scorecard of the agency in 2021, he reiterated that the global shipping and economic climate was adversely impacted since 2020 down to 2021 owing to the global pandemic of Covid-19, lockdown, destruction of global supply chain and slow down of economic activities across the globe.

The DG further stated that the agency has signed Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with the Maritime Transport Coordination Center(MTCC), for capacity development to address the need for reduction of Green House Gas emission in the maritime industry with emphasis on achieving 0.5% Sulphur Oxide in Bunker fuel.

“our laboratory is already completed and we hope to enter a public private partnership arrangement this year to manage the laboratory for optimal utilization,”

The agency it said  carried out 20 marine accident investigations in 2021, as against 18 in the year 2020, while also enforcing safety regulations on barges and tugboats under the code name; Operation Sting Ray.

Jamoh said NIMASA took delivery of more Deep Blue Project Assets, which was flagged-off by President Muhammadu Buhari, adding that some of these assets have been deployed to the Nigerian Navy for its operational use.

Accordingly, he said “the Agency is collaborating with major international stakeholders in the maritime sector in other to entrench coordinated response to piracy and other criminalities on the Nigerian waters and prompt reportage and escalation. of marine incidences to where action is most expected and to provide navigational advisory to mariners,” Jamoh emphasised.

L-R: Balarabe Abbas, Secretary to the Kaduna State Government; Dr. Bashir Jamoh, Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency(NIMASA); Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, Executive Governor Kaduna State, and Lady Aisha Dikko the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Kaduna State,

On Politics, Jamoh said it will be a hard choice for him leaving the Maritme industry he loves so much for politics but will not hesitate to answer the call of his people to serve them in any capacity either in the state( Kaduna State) or at the federal level.