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Unregistered Freight Forwarding associations in the Nigerian maritime industry have been described as black market and that they would be irrelevant in the freight forwarding industry under the regime of the Nigerian Institute of Freight Forwarders and Customs Brokers in Nigeria (NIFFNCB).
This was said by the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Institute of Freight Forwarders and Customs Brokers (NIFFCB), Mr. Ifeanyi Joseph when the institute paid a courtesy call on the National Council of Managing Directors of Customs Licensed Agents (NCMDCLA) at their secretariat in Lagos, last week.
According to the Executive Secretary, only five associations are registered by the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) hence only the five are recognised as existing freight forwarding and customs brokers associations and are accorded the acceptability by the institute .
According to him, the registered ones include the National Council of Managing Directors of Customs Licensed Agents (NCMDCLA); Association of Nigeria Customs Licensed Agents (ANLCA); Association of Registered Freight Forwarders (AREFF); National Association of Freight Forwarders and Air Consolidators (NAFFAC) and National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF).
However, the institute visited the association in order to sensitize them on the need to register the members of the association as members of the institute so that they can also benefit from the technical advantages accruable from being member of the institute.
He added that the institute will establish a robust database of all freight forwarding associations and to accord them the education as obtained in other professionals like the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) and others.
Earlier, the President of the Institute, Dr. Zebulum Ikhokide in his speech said the visit was mainly to articulate the view of the institute in view of freight forwarding practice in Nigeria so as to harness the view of all the associations so that their members can be heard when they channel their views through the CRFFN.
“It is worthy to note that freight forwarding is an aspect of the national economy. It is the hub-nub of all national economic development efforts and aspirations, particularly as it affects Air and Sea transport.”
“This is why we are calling for a collaboration with your association in our drive to train crop of dedicated individual that can be of service in the freight forwarding industry, so that our positive contributions are not allowed to be tarnished through disorganised and uncoordinated activities,” he said.
Meanwhile, the factional National President of NCMDCLA, Festus Ejiofor appealed to the management of the institute to make the registration fee affordable such that all the members will be able to register with them saying that will help it not to go the way of the CRFFN whose activities have been slowed down as a fallout of the enormity of the registration process
Ejiofor however promised that the association will support the institute in its resolve to train freight forwarders saying it will also be of benefit to the members.
