The Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Hadiza Bala-Usman has taken steps to end the monopoly in the port Industry with her new directive that every terminal in the port is free to receive any cargo in so far as they have the technical competence to handle such.
The Managing Director maintained that the Authority would ensure a level playing field for all the operators and emphasized that “no investor is above the law and that all must comply with laid down rules and regulations”.
Speaking when she received visiting members of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering in her office, Usman requested for greater collaboration and support from the Academy in the areas of new engineering projects.
The Managing Director assured that NPA would give her widow’s mite to support the Academy, while the organization would also look at the possibility of supporting relevant technical institution in her Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) especially in the areas of capacity building.
In her address, the President of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering, Engr. (Mrs) J.O. Maduka expressed her joy at what the NPA boss has achieved within a short period, adding that NPA was noted to have produced very competent engineers in the past.
The President of the Academy, solicited NPA’s support in the efforts of the Academy to resuscitate engineering institutions and colleges in Lagos, lamenting that Government has not given enough recognition to the profession.
Meanwhile in a related development NPA has been commended for the success it had recorded in the areas of Public Private Partnerships (PPP) across board in order to bring to bear the dividends of a most effective Administrative Management of the operational activities of the Organization in line with best practices particularly as it concerns developmental projects.
These appreciative statements were made when the top Executives of the Presidency, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) visited the NPA Management at the Corporate Headquarters of the Organization at Marina, Lagos led by Gabriel .T. Aduda, Director Civil Service Transformation Department and colleagues.
Speaking during the occasion, the Managing Director of the NPA, Hadiza Bala Usman expressed the preparedness of the Management of the Organization at collaborating further with meaningful initiatives with the Government Agencies and globally with the view to joining the Comity of Nations along the dictates of generating more revenue for the Country.
Similarly, she enlisted the support of the Commission in her quest for a regime of greater infrastructural sufficiency and customer satisfactory operations in the sector and in relations to activities in the sub-region.
The Managing Director NPA further solicited guidance of the Commission in order to perform more creditably well in their mandate sighting fiscal challenges in relation to budgetary provisions as critical areas that require prioritization.
Earlier, the leader of the delegation Gabriel .T. Aduda affirmed that the Committee was a Federal Government entity set up to effectively assist the Public Private Partnerships (PPP’s) and Ministry Departments and Agencies (MDA’s) reduce the cost of corporate governance and administration most especially on the execution of projects on going across the nation as captured in 2017 budget as well as come up with strategies within which Government would boost its revenue base to meet up with relative expenditure profile.
According to him, the Commissions responsibilities includes strategizing for the improvement for the civil service needs areas and recommend to Government accordingly concerning these for example as its concerns condition of service and remuneration.
He stated that Government appreciated the exploits of the NPA Management through the windows of Public Private Partnerships concerning the laid out operational business plans for Ikorodu Lighter Terminal, Kirikiri Lighter Terminal and the Single Windowinitiatives amongst other projects herewith not forgetting the Management efforts at Human Resource Development, Capacity Building and making a public document the budget of the Organization through a renowned synergy agreement with Messrs BudgIT.
