The Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has intensified efforts to reduce the country’s prolonged cargo clearance delays—currently averaging 21 days, one of the longest globally—through a new capacity-building programme in collaboration with the Maritime Police Command.

The workshop, themed “Facilitating Port Efficiency: The Strategic Role of the Maritime Police”, was held yesterday in Lagos. Speaking on behalf of the NSC Executive Secretary, Pius Akutah, Director of Regulatory Services, Margaret Ogbonnah, described the event as a key milestone in the council’s partnership with the Nigeria Police, aimed at improving port operations under the blue economy reform agenda.

Akutah noted that despite government interventions, Nigeria lags behind global peers in cargo clearance speed—taking 6 hours in Singapore and 7 days in Lomé, compared to 21 days in Nigerian ports. He highlighted operational gaps, human-factor delays, and interference from uncoordinated enforcement as major contributors to extended dwell times, which increase demurrage and storage costs.

Since 2018, the NSC and Maritime Police have implemented directives to streamline enforcement, ensuring only authorised letters from designated officers guide action on port cargo. Akutah emphasised that ongoing improvements must aim for international best practices.

ACP Olufikayo Fawole and AIG Chinedu Oko commended the NSC for sustaining collaborative platforms that support law enforcement efficiency in the maritime environment. They stressed that modern port security requires integration with operators, regulators, freight forwarders, and shipping lines to ensure smooth trade flows.

The technical paper delivered by DCP Chukwuemeka Obasi outlined three reform pillars:

1. Operational streamlining by harmonising enforcement roles across agencies.
2. Technology integration, including digital surveillance, cargo-monitoring platforms, and intelligence tools via the Deep Blue Project.
3. Stakeholder collaboration, enhancing joint task forces and port security committees for coordinated maritime security responses.

He acknowledged persistent challenges such as overlapping mandates, limited logistics, legal bottlenecks, and ethical concerns, recommending joint frameworks, specialised training, smart surveillance, legal reforms, and accountability systems.

Akutah concluded that port efficiency cannot be achieved by a single institution. The NSC is committed to capacity-building, technology-driven enforcement, and regulatory collaboration to restore competitiveness, improve trade facilitation, and support Nigeria’s blue economy ambitions.