Terminal Operators Task FG, Lagos Govt on Infrastructure as Prelude to Lekki Deep Seaport, Dangote Refinery Debut

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By Francis Ugwoke
Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN) has called on the federal government and the Lagos state government on the urgent need to provide necessary infrastructure in support of the planned take-off of Dangote Refinery and Lekki Deep Seaport in Lagos.
Chairman of the Seaport STOAN, Princess Dr. Vicky Haastrup who spoke at a Townhall Meeting organised by the League of Maritime Editors and Publishers said infrastructure was key to the smooth take-off of the two giant projects in Lagos.
Haastrup pointed out that rail connectivity to the two projects was very important to make movement of cargoes freely and avoid congestion as has been the case in Apapa port environment.
According to her, the government needs to be fast in addressing the issue of infrastructure that will aid smooth operations of the two projects.
STOAN had during the event blamed the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for manual processes instead of automation in the clearance of goods at the ports, saying this trend has been responsible for the huge costs suffered in doing business at nation’s ports.
The terminal operators said such manual processes were no longer in line with global trends as automation has become the order of the day, including the West and Central African sub-region.
Haastrup who was the Special Guest of Honour at the event said the traditional manual processes which have been prevalent in clearing processes constitute a lot of bottlenecks in the ports system as well as huge costs to importers.
She disclosed that a “study conducted by Akintola Williams Deloitte in 2017 blamed the high cost of doing business at the nation’s seaports on the Nigeria Customs Service and other government agencies.
“The study stated that Customs processes are responsible for not less than 81.7 per cent of the charges incurred by consignees. It said Shipping Companies are responsible for 13.8 per cent of the port cost; Terminal Operators 1.4 per cent; Transporters 1.4 per cent and Clearing Agents 1.7 per cent”.
“A major reason for the high cost associated with Customs is manual processes”, she said.
Haastrup said manual examination of cargoes has assumed the proportion of an endemic sore point in Nigeria’s Customs administration, adding that the Customs Service performs 100 per cent physical examination on almost all cargoes passing through the ports.
She also disclosed that manual processing of goods clearance by the Customs was the reason why importers and their customs agents troop to the ports on daily basis.
In her paper titled ‘Impact of Automation in Cargo Handling Operation’ under the theme ‘Achieving Effective Digitalization of Nigeria’s Maritime Industry’, she said manual process in goods clearance has been breeding corruption through numerous human contacts.
She said, “This is not efficient and it constitutes a huge drawback to port efficiency. The manual inspection by Customs contributes in no small measure to the high dwell time of cargoes at our ports. It is also the main reason why importers and agents troop to the port daily. This is in addition to breeding corruption through numerous human contacts”
She was of the view that the solution was for the federal government to engage the private sector, as was done under the previous Destination Inspection scheme, to acquire high-end scanners for use of the Customs Service.