NESG Session: Oyetola Restates Ministry’s Commitment To Public-Private Partnerships, Says 24-48 Hours Customs Clearance ‘Achievable’
Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr. Adegboyega Oyetola, has reiterated that the ministry will on his watch remain committed to fixing some of the challenges confronting the nation’s marine and blue economy and also do the needful to open up the sector to private investments and public-private partnerships.
A statement made available to Team@orientactualmags.com by his media office on Tuesday morning noted that he said this during one of the dinner sessions held at the ongoing 29th Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja which had as its theme ‘Sailing to Success: Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Potential’.
The event was put together by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, NESG.
Oyetola noted that while the country has witnessed transformation in the telecoms and power sectors through private sector participation, he believes that enabling private sector investments is also key to unlocking Nigeria’s economic potential in the Marine and Blue Economy sector.
He also talked about the government’s readiness to enhance efficiency at the ports and facilitate the establishment of private sector-led Maritime Development Zones for the co-location of ancillary services such as ‘wreck removal, wreck recycling, ship building, ship repairs, etc’.
‘We are also working to streamline the number of government agencies operating at the ports through the full implementation of the National Single Window initiative. We are also automating port operations through the deployment of a Port Community System and phasing out manual cargo inspections’ the minister said.
Oyetola further noted the importance of expanding the domestic shipping fleet by encouraging new shipping lines and enforcing the Cabotage Act more rigorously, adding that ‘it is imperative that we move quickly towards improving the navigability of our waters, increase the draughts of our ports, achieve 24-48 hours cargo clearance, and ensure adequate connectivity of our ports to the hinterland, with efficient road and rail networks’ .
‘Our goal is to build a thriving maritime and blue economy sector that makes a substantial contribution to Nigeria’s GDP.
I commend the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, NESG, for being a leading private sector-led think-tank and for advocating economic policies and initiatives that will reform and transform our country’s economy’ he added-Team@orientactualmags.com
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