A maritime expert, Retired Rear Adm. Godwill Ombo, has suggested that ship
owners should form cooperative groups for easy access to the Cabotage Vessel
Financing Fund (CVFF).
owners should form cooperative groups for easy access to the Cabotage Vessel
Financing Fund (CVFF).
Ombo said in an interview in Lagos that the cooperative group would serve as a
formidable front for indigenous ship owners to benefit from the CVFF and grow.
formidable front for indigenous ship owners to benefit from the CVFF and grow.
He said this would enable the indigenous ship owners to effectively
participate in the Cabotage trade, adding that the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation (NNPC) had a role to play in this.
participate in the Cabotage trade, adding that the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation (NNPC) had a role to play in this.
“If ship owners do not have the wherewithal,
they should form cooperative group to assess the funds to be able to get
vessels to come into the country to participate in the Cabotage trade as
indigenous ship owners in this country.
“The government, the minister of transport, NIMASA, must do everything quickly
to make the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund, that is supposed to be administered
by NIMASA, operative and accessible by indigenous ship owners.
“We must encourage people to go into indigenous shipping if we want to get
the maritime industry to grow faster.
the maritime industry to grow faster.
“NNPC has a very critical role to play because it is worthless bringing in
vessels and not being able to carry goods.
“We must work out an arrangement that is good enough for this country and for
our indigenous ship owners to grow,’’ Ombo said.
Ombo, who is the Vice-Secretary, Society of Nigerian Mariners (SNM), said
Nigerians should benefit from the fact that “cabotage everywhere in the world
is a strategy to encourage growth of indigenous shipping locally’’.
Nigerians should benefit from the fact that “cabotage everywhere in the world
is a strategy to encourage growth of indigenous shipping locally’’.
He urged banks to key into ship financing as a worthy economic investment which
could make them stronger with time.
