The Minister of Trade, Industry, and Investments, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, has commended Starzs Investment company Ltd., for its resilience and dedication to industry growth, as it marks 40 years of operation and service in the maritime sector.
Giving this commendation in her goodwill message in Port Harcourt during the company’s anniversary celebrations, the Minister described Starzs as a pillar in a capital-intensive and technically demanding sector of marine and offshore logistics.
She commended Engr Greg Ogbeifun, the STARZS Founder and the STARZS Group, for standing tenaciously against all operational odds to clock 40 years in active business and still counting.
”Today, we are not simply celebrating longevity. We are recognizing sustainability in institution building. From an entrepreneurial vision in 1986, STARZS has grown to operate a fleet of 11 offshore support vessels, employed more than 200 professionals and executed over 35 offshore marine contracts since 2010.”
Those figures, she explained, represent Nigerian assets, Nigerian enterprise and Nigerian jobs. They prove that Nigerian firms can build technical capability and competing contracts sectors.
”I am extremely pleased to witness what Engr Greg Ogbeifun has built, and I must say I am particularly proud to see Engr Ogbeifun’s star mentee of mine of many, many years, and a serial entrepreneur in her own right (Ms Iroghama Ogbeifun) leading the institution into its second generation.
”The 40 for 40 initiative, supporting 40 beneficiaries with maritime education and skills opportunity, is also a fitting reminder that enduring institutions do not only build businesses, they build people. So when you have a father like this, you build people, build generations. This milestone comes as an important moment for African children.”
Mrs Oduwole announced that in addition to Nigeria serving as co-champion for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Protocol on Digital Trade, she recently assumed the chair of the AfCFTA Council of Ministers responsible for Trade.
”Our focus is clear. The implementation must translate into practical opportunities for businesses that service over 1.4 billion Africans. That is why Nigeria has developed dedicated AfCFTA logistic solutions to lower the cost of reaching African markets.
“Through our expanded Rwanda Air Corridor, with Uganda Air and Rwanda Air, air cargo rates that ranged from 3 to 10 USD per kilogram on commercial routes have been brought to under 2 dollars per kilogram. So the air cargo corridor goes to 13 southern and eastern African countries. This is what trade must deliver: lower costs and real routes to market,” Oduwole said.
The Minister made it clear that for the avoidance of doubt, the real opportunity for trading across the continent obviously lies in the maritime sector, an area the STARZS Group is already making waves.
”As intra-African trade grows”, she explained, “so will demand for stronger coastal shipping, more efficient regional corridors, and logistic systems capable of moving goods competitively across the continent. A company with four decades of maritime experience is already positioning deliberately for that future. I’m aware of some discussions on the West African Corridor.”
”I’m aware of interests from Angola and other southern African regions. And I know it’s just a matter of time before that vision presents itself fully. This also speaks directly to our mandate at the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and to the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu to expand productive capability, deepen local value chains, and create the conditions for Nigerian enterprises to scale across Africa and beyond.
”In this regard, the wider STARZS ecosystem to work towards expanded additional shipping capability, including a 9,000-ton lifting capacity, is significant. Nigeria needs more investment that retains value locally, develops specialized skills, and reduces dependence on services sourced outside our economy.
“So, as STARZS enters its fifth decade, my charge is simple: build with greater skill and continental ambition, invest deeper in technology and talent. And apply 40 years of Nigerian maritime experience to the opportunities now emerging across an increasingly integrated African market.”
