FG, Stakeholders Move Against Arbitrary Shipping Charges by Multinational Shipping Lines
By Onyinye Apeh
In a united front, the federal government and industry stakeholders made up of the organised private sector Wednesday protested against the arbitrary charges by multinational shipping lines.
At a summit hosted by the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC), stakeholders made up of members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Nigerian Association of Chamber of Commerce, Industry , Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), importers and freight forwarders said it was time to check the multinational shipping lines and their local agents against such illegal charges.
The latest surcharge is Peak Season Surcharge (PSS) in which Cosco, Maersk, MSC, CGM, Hapag Lloyd and Evergreen shipping lines are fingered to have increased.
Hapag-Lloyd was reported to have recently introduced PSS on all containers coming through Apapa and Tin Can Island ports.
Freight forwarders said the surcharge is $1025 for 20 and 40ft containers coming from the United States, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong and $1025 or EUR 930 for containers coming from other countries.
At Wednesday’s meeting, the Executive Secretary, Mr Hassan Bello described the new shipping charges which was about 400 percent increment from $200 as scary and without explanation or justification.
Bello whose Council rallied the stakeholders against the surcharge disclosed that the agency has written a protest letter to the shipping firms and expects their response.
According to him “if a Nigeria bound container is charged as much as 1000 dollars then the national economy is in trouble.
“It means job losses and many shippers will be out of business. These charges are astronomic, unjustified, not notified and discriminatory. This is against fair trade facilitation rules.
“We have also written to the Ministry of Transportation to escalate it to Ministry of Trade and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Federal Government will protest will protest the charges.
“We have been having surcharge in the range of $200to $400, but not 400 percent increase and there was no time limit. It is already going to nine months and this is not what any economy can cope with. This can cripple the economy”.
The Managing Director, Ms Hadiza Usman, who was represented on the occasion by the General Manager, Tariff and Billings, Abubakar Garban Umar also condemned the high shipping charges.
Usman said, “If the importers are charged so high and they abandoned the goods at the ports, NPA will lose revenue and it would reduce efficiency and turnaround of ships at Nigerian ports”.
Director General of LCCI, Dr Muda Yusuf said the new charges were not in the interest of the economy and businesses in Nigeria.
Yusuf said the charges would be resisted because of the negative effect and impact it will; inflict on Nigerians.
The representative of MAN, Mr. Olufemi Immanuel equally condemned the new charges, adding that perhaps unknown to the shipping companies, the charges came when manufacturers have laid off some workers as a result of no raw materials and low profit.
He said if allowed to hold, the charges will push up prices of goods in the market to an unbearable situation.
Chairperson of Shipowners Forum who represented NACCIMA said the surcharges would be a big blow to commerce.
“Our members borrowed huge money to import items and they are slammed with huge amount. You can only imagine the effect this would have on the economy, then it would affect the banks too”
The Vice President of Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) , Dr. Kayode Farinto was of the view that Nigeria should collaborate with ECOWAS on how to check the arbitrary charges.
Farinto said this will form a united front by the West African countries against such arbitrary charges in the continent.
His counterpart in the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Chief Increase Uche said freight forwarders will not accept the new charges.
It would be recalled that the Council had waged a war against the multinational shipping lines over imposition of arbitrary surcharges on Nigerian shippers.
The Council had last year identified about eight surcharges being imposed on shippers in Nigerian and other neighbouring countries with negative impact on the economies.
The surcharges include peak season surcharge (PSS); extra risk insurance (ERI)/carrier security fee (CSF) surcharge; congestion surcharge (CS); freight tax surcharge (FTS); operations cost recovery (OCR); low sulphur surcharge (LSS); B.A.F (bunker adjustment surcharge) and C.A.F. (currency adjustment surcharge).
Participants from 16 countries who attended the conference of the summit organised by the Council in collaboration with the Union of African Shippers Council Councils and Global Shippers Forum in August last year at Abuja had condemned the surcharges and high local shipping charges by international shipping lines.
The participants had expressed concerns about the effect of the surcharge on their economic and resolved to protest to the
The 16-member countries said they cannot afford to fold their hands while foreign shipowners and their agents continue to rip-off shippers through arbitrary charges. Part of the consensus agreement was therefore to take up the matter with foreign shipowners at a meeting of GSF which held London in September.
In the words of Hassan Bello, who was the Chairman of the Standing Committee 1 on Trade and Transport during the meeting, African countries must check the excesses of the shipowners and their agents.
Speaking on the arbitrary increase in charges and introduction of new nomenclatures by shipping lines, Bello said member states should insist that shippers must be consulted before new charges are imposed on them.
He also said shippers must take time to study and ask questions on the component of the charges being presented to them and agree on their justification before payment is made.
He enjoined shippers councils in the sub-region to resort to legislation as suggested by the Secretary General of GSF , Mr James Hookham, if the foreign ship owners continue to impose such charges without negotiation.
In a united front, the federal government and industry stakeholders made up of the organised private sector Wednesday protested against the arbitrary charges by multinational shipping lines.
At a summit hosted by the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC), stakeholders made up of members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Nigerian Association of Chamber of Commerce, Industry , Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), importers and freight forwarders said it was time to check the multinational shipping lines and their local agents against such illegal charges.
The latest surcharge is Peak Season Surcharge (PSS) in which Cosco, Maersk, MSC, CGM, Hapag Lloyd and Evergreen shipping lines are fingered to have increased.
Hapag-Lloyd was reported to have recently introduced PSS on all containers coming through Apapa and Tin Can Island ports.
Freight forwarders said the surcharge is $1025 for 20 and 40ft containers coming from the United States, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong and $1025 or EUR 930 for containers coming from other countries.
At Wednesday’s meeting, the Executive Secretary, Mr Hassan Bello described the new shipping charges which was about 400 percent increment from $200 as scary and without explanation or justification.
Bello whose Council rallied the stakeholders against the surcharge disclosed that the agency has written a protest letter to the shipping firms and expects their response.
According to him “if a Nigeria bound container is charged as much as 1000 dollars then the national economy is in trouble.
“It means job losses and many shippers will be out of business. These charges are astronomic, unjustified, not notified and discriminatory. This is against fair trade facilitation rules.
“We have also written to the Ministry of Transportation to escalate it to Ministry of Trade and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Federal Government will protest will protest the charges.
“We have been having surcharge in the range of $200to $400, but not 400 percent increase and there was no time limit. It is already going to nine months and this is not what any economy can cope with. This can cripple the economy”.
The Managing Director, Ms Hadiza Usman, who was represented on the occasion by the General Manager, Tariff and Billings, Abubakar Garban Umar also condemned the high shipping charges.
Usman said, “If the importers are charged so high and they abandoned the goods at the ports, NPA will lose revenue and it would reduce efficiency and turnaround of ships at Nigerian ports”.
Director General of LCCI, Dr Muda Yusuf said the new charges were not in the interest of the economy and businesses in Nigeria.
Yusuf said the charges would be resisted because of the negative effect and impact it will; inflict on Nigerians.
The representative of MAN, Mr. Olufemi Immanuel equally condemned the new charges, adding that perhaps unknown to the shipping companies, the charges came when manufacturers have laid off some workers as a result of no raw materials and low profit.
He said if allowed to hold, the charges will push up prices of goods in the market to an unbearable situation.
Chairperson of Shipowners Forum who represented NACCIMA said the surcharges would be a big blow to commerce.
“Our members borrowed huge money to import items and they are slammed with huge amount. You can only imagine the effect this would have on the economy, then it would affect the banks too”
The Vice President of Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) , Dr. Kayode Farinto was of the view that Nigeria should collaborate with ECOWAS on how to check the arbitrary charges.
Farinto said this will form a united front by the West African countries against such arbitrary charges in the continent.
His counterpart in the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Chief Increase Uche said freight forwarders will not accept the new charges.
It would be recalled that the Council had waged a war against the multinational shipping lines over imposition of arbitrary surcharges on Nigerian shippers.
The Council had last year identified about eight surcharges being imposed on shippers in Nigerian and other neighbouring countries with negative impact on the economies.
The surcharges include peak season surcharge (PSS); extra risk insurance (ERI)/carrier security fee (CSF) surcharge; congestion surcharge (CS); freight tax surcharge (FTS); operations cost recovery (OCR); low sulphur surcharge (LSS); B.A.F (bunker adjustment surcharge) and C.A.F. (currency adjustment surcharge).
Participants from 16 countries who attended the conference of the summit organised by the Council in collaboration with the Union of African Shippers Council Councils and Global Shippers Forum in August last year at Abuja had condemned the surcharges and high local shipping charges by international shipping lines.
The participants had expressed concerns about the effect of the surcharge on their economic and resolved to protest to the
The 16-member countries said they cannot afford to fold their hands while foreign shipowners and their agents continue to rip-off shippers through arbitrary charges. Part of the consensus agreement was therefore to take up the matter with foreign shipowners at a meeting of GSF which held London in September.
In the words of Hassan Bello, who was the Chairman of the Standing Committee 1 on Trade and Transport during the meeting, African countries must check the excesses of the shipowners and their agents.
Speaking on the arbitrary increase in charges and introduction of new nomenclatures by shipping lines, Bello said member states should insist that shippers must be consulted before new charges are imposed on them.
He also said shippers must take time to study and ask questions on the component of the charges being presented to them and agree on their justification before payment is made.
He enjoined shippers councils in the sub-region to resort to legislation as suggested by the Secretary General of GSF , Mr James Hookham, if the foreign ship owners continue to impose such charges without negotiation.
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