The Nigerian Cabotage policy encourages indigenous shipping and proper implementation of the cabotage policy in Nigeria would be able to provide more jobs, cause a growth in skill acquisition; increase in revenue generation and eventually development of the shipping capacity of the country.
The ongoing amendment of the Cabotage Act 2003 by the National Assembly will reposition the nation’s maritime industry and promises a world of opportunities for local industry players, writes Olaoluwakitan Babatunde
With nearly 900km coastal line and about 10,000km of inland waterways, matched with enormous potentials and opportunities, Nigerian maritime sector is capable of generating at least US$1.6 trillion or about 30 times the nation’s annual oil revenues. This is according to a research by the World Bank. Sadly, the nation has not been able to harness these potentials to adequately benefit from it.
In this light, the Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act 2003 was enacted to help grow indigenous participation and ownership in the shipping industry. The idea is to reserve commercial transportation within Nigerian coastal and inland waters to vessels flying the Nigerian flag, owned and crewed by Nigerian citizens, and built-in Nigeria.