Experts To Review Q1, 2021 Maritime Activities At MAJAN Event
The Maritime Journalists Association of Nigeria (MAJAN), has concluded plans to hold a one-day programme to review activities and policies in the maritime industry, in first quarter of 2021.
The programme slated for Thursday, May 20, 2021 in Lagos, will present a stage for maritime experts and stakeholders to give in-depth assessment of the sector in areas of growth, investments in-flow, revenue collection, job creation, contributions to GDP and foreign exchange earnings, among others.
In that capacity, stakeholders will have ample opportunity to Commend, critique, and table suggestions on programmes and policies introduced by government in the first quarter. These include; commencement of African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA); the Electronic Call-up system introduced by Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to tackle traffic gridlock on ports access roads; issues of insecurity/lack of safety surrounding barge operations; Customs modernisation project; issues of security on the waterways; and many others.
Stakeholders and Experts will also look at how the sector has faired in the first quarter of 2021, the challenges facing the sector and the way forward.
Addressing Journalists in Lagos over the weekend, the MAJAN President, Comrade Ray Ugochukwu, said assessment of the sector is quite imperative, in order to have an overview of the sector in the first quarter.
According to him, “Journalists have a duty to disseminate information to the public and as such they must have a clear understanding of activities in the maritime sector and the economy at large, in order to give the reading public credible information at all times”.
It would be recalled that MAJAN, Publishers of The Powerful Pen Newspaper, has been at forefront of seeking efficiency and optimum productive at the nation’s Seaports.
MAJAN was the firs organization in the sector to raise the alarm on the Apapa gridlock with a sensitization March/ prossession in December, 2016.
Just this year alone MAJAN and the Powerful Pen has gathered Maritime stakeholders twice on finding lasting solutions to the gridlock which has remained unabated till today. There are communiqués for theae events.
However, while many stakeholders attend these events and others request for the communiqués, the agencies of government in the sector have not shown much support.
The interest of MAJAN is to see that governments get the deserved revenue from the Maritime sector.
Ugochukwu at MAJAN’s roundtable last month at Rocview Hotel, Apapa said: “with adequate infrastructure and friendly business environment, the maritime sector is capable of generating much more revenue for the country than Oil.” This is a fact.
