Trade Facilitation: Shippers Council, SON Task Stakeholders on Ethical Values, Adherence to International Best Practices
NSC says registration exercise to check faceless operators
By Francis Ugwoke
Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) Thursday called on importers, freight forwarders and other stakeholders to strive to adhere to international best practices in the conduct of their businesses as part of the agenda to promote trade facilitation in the country.
Explaining that the Council’s goal is to promote an efficient port system that will encourage healthy competition, enthrone transparency, facilitate trade and reduce cost of doing business, the Council said stakeholders need to cooperate by obeying all regulations guiding trade.
Speaking during a seminar organised by the Council in collaboration with the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) in Lagos under the theme “Ethics and Integrity in Shipping Trade”, the Executive Secretary, Mr Hassan Bello said the stakeholders should respect trade rules, adding that this promotes efficiency.
Bello explained that the Council’s goal is to promote an efficiency port system that will make players become aware of their duties, obligations, responsibilities and liabilities.
“With high ethical practices in place in the port system, vices such as impunity, presumptuous behaviours and ignorance with respect to adherence to procedures, rules and regulations will be minimized”, he said.
Bello added that the NSC as the port economic regulator has evolved new strategies whereby standardized services, tariffs, rates and charges are being put in place with attendant optimal benefits to providers and consumers of port services.
In a paper titled ‘The Role of Nigerian Shippers Council in Trade Facilitation’ the NCS CEO argued that trade facilitation is not just buzzword in international business circles, but now an indication of how a nation fares in the global trading environment.
In the paper presented on his behalf by Chief Cajetan Agu , the Director, Consumer Services of the Council, Bello told the stakeholders that “an effective trade facilitation requires stakeholders collaboration to foster transparency, predictability and efficiency in trade transactions which in turn attract more trade and thereby improve our position on all indices of global business performance”.
He maintained that all stakeholders must therefore accept a paradigm shift in their operations and embrace the streamlining of formalities (documentation and procedures).
The stakeholders, he said, must also accept the reduction of documentations and procedures, automation of processes and procedures to achieve the desired efficiency and cost reduction.
Bello further called for promotion of synergy among border agencies and usual institutional turfs to check delays and high cost of conducting cross border trade in Nigeria.
According to him, it was important to establish a strong platform for addressing and resolving issues of common interest to the national economy for timely decision to facilitate trade.
The Council also explained that the registration exercise being carried out was in accordance with the provisions of the Act that sets NSC as economic regulator.
Agu explained that Section 4 of the NSC Act empowers the Council to register all stakeholders.
Registration of stakeholders, he added will help in checking issues of faceless importers and exporters.
According to him, there has been cases of importers of certain containers not being located when the need arises, adding that such were issues of faceless stakeholders.
In his speech on the occasion, the Director-General of SON, Mr. Osita Aboloma, called on importers and freight forwarders to adhere to code of ethics as they were necessary guidelines for adjudging the integrity with which services are rendered.
Aboloma who was represented by a Director with SON, Engr. Obiora Manafa said this helps in fostering the trust of the stakeholders and the society in general.
He added that SON has been proactive in ensuring that requisite standards are made available for most products in Nigerian markets.
“SON has set up regulatory frameworks for compliance with these standards. Procedures are made available and adequate sensitization s are being carried out to ensure that the public is abreast with the activities of SON. These are deliberate attempts to remove doubts and ensure transparency in our operations and services to stakeholders”, he said.
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