Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has directed delivery firms, brokers and terminal operators to droop all opinions or will increase in port fees to revive stability and guarantee clear stakeholder engagement.
The directive was issued by the Govt Secretary and Chief Govt Officer of the NSC, Dr Pius Akutah, by means of the Council’s Head of Public Relations, Mrs Rebecca Adamu, in a press release on Tuesday in Lagos.
Akutah mentioned all terminal operators, delivery brokers and delivery firms should chorus from implementing new tariff changes till significant consultations with stakeholders have been concluded.
He famous that current port cost opinions had been carried out strictly inside the council’s statutory mandate because the Port Financial Regulator.
“All tariff opinions carried out had been clear, structured, and adopted a well-defined regulatory course of,” Akutah mentioned.
Based on him, the evaluation processes concerned detailed technical assessments and consultative engagements with affected service suppliers.
This, he emphasised, was to guage value drivers, operational realities, funding obligations and regulatory compliance.
Akutah defined that such engagements didn’t quantity to automated approval of recent fees, noting that remaining choices had been made solely after rigorous inner, technical and monetary assessments.
He added that the assessments had been guided by empirical proof, regulatory benchmarks and prevailing financial situations.
“However these processes, delivery firms, brokers and terminal operators are hereby directed to droop any meant evaluation of fees till correct stakeholder engagement has been carried out,” he mentioned.
The NSC boss warned that the council would take strict motion towards any service supplier discovered disrupting port operations, stressing its authority to implement compliance underneath current legal guidelines.
“Transparency, equity and stakeholder participation stay basic rules underpinning port financial regulation in Nigeria,” Akutah mentioned.
He reassured port customers and operators of the council’s dedication to defending stakeholders’ pursuits, selling honest competitors and making certain a predictable and steady enterprise surroundings within the maritime sector.
Akutah additionally famous that the NSC is empowered to use sanctions, together with enforcement measures outlined in related regulatory frameworks, towards defaulting operators.
The directive adopted protests on Monday by members of the Affiliation of Nigeria Licensed Customs Brokers (ANLCA) and different freight forwarders, who shut down the Mediterranean Delivery Firm (MSC) workplace in Apapa over elevated fees.
The MSC had raised the Import Documentation Charge for 20-foot containers from N45,000 to N58,500 and for 40-foot containers from N72,000 to N93,600, whereas extra port fees elevated from N50,000 to N80,000 for 20-foot containers and from N100,000 to N160,000 for 40-foot containers.
The NSC mentioned its intervention was geared toward making certain honest session, stopping additional disruptions and sustaining concord in port operations whereas balancing the pursuits of service suppliers and port customers. (NAN)(www.nananews.ng)
