FG Plans PPP For Port Scanner Installations

The Federal Government said it is considering the Public-Private Partnerships option to oversee the installation and maintenance of scanning technology at the nation’s ports.

This was disclosed in a statement on Monday after the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola and his Transportation counterpart, Said Alkali, met with the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Adewale Adeniyi, in Abuja.

The trip agreed that physical inspection of cargoes at the ports must be phased out.

Media reported that the immediate past Comptroller-General of Customs, Col Hameed Ali (retd), at the unveiling of the three scanners at Apapa towards in 2022, said the Federal Government would be procuring more scanners before the end of 2023.

Agents have, however, called on the government to install more scanners in the country’s seaports and border stations to boost cargo clearance.

In a statement jointly signed by the spokesperson for the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Ismail Omipidan, and the Customs spokesman, Abdullahi Maiwada, the government officials agreed that the collaborative model aims to sustain efficiency and foster innovation in cargo inspection processes.

They added that the use of modern technologies like scanners was important in addressing the issue of port congestion in a bid to ensure efficiency and competitiveness even as the CGC was charged to enforce the use of scanners at the ports.

At the meeting, the ministers endorsed immediate action to rectify and optimise all existing scanners at prominent ports such as Apapa, Tincan Island, Onne, and Port & Terminal Multipurpose Limited.

“Simultaneously, the existing mobile scanners will be strategically deployed to facilitate expeditious cargo inspections,” the statement said.

Also speaking, the Managing Director of Nigerian Railway Corporation, Fidet Okhiria, who attended virtually, pledged NRC’s continued commitment to freighting cargoes to inland container depots/dry ports adding that it would be a strategic move to alleviate congestion at major ports.

Plans were also unveiled at the meeting for the efficient evacuation of containers from Port Harcourt to Aba, with future extensions envisaged for Onne Port.