How N2.5trn seaports annual loss affecting FG’s ease of doing business -Report
Corruption and exercise of discretionary powers by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and other port officials have had huge implications for the Federal Government ease of doing business in Nigerian seaports and terminals, leading to a revenue loss of about N2.5 trillion annually in the ports industry.
This is contained in a report made available to participants in Lagos, on Tuesday, at a Round Table Session by the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network (MACN) and its private-sector facing arm, Convention on Business Integrity (CBI).
The report, which was jointly funded by ActionAid and UK Aid, revealed that negative operational elements had pushed many customers to now use ports and terminals of neighbouring countries, thereby leading to loss of foreign exchange earnings for Nigeria.
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The report, which was researched by Dr Olayinka Akande of the Department of Sociology of the University of Ibadan further stated that port capacity utilization in Nigeria stands at between 38 and 40 per cent, adding that approximately 40 per cent of businesses located around the ports communities have either relocated to other areas, scaled-down operations or completely closed down.
According to the report, “There is a general consensus that corruption exists in the ports and have grown over the years to the extent that the most popular identities of ports in Nigeria are corruption and inefficiency.
“A major issue in the ports, inefficiency marketplace is the role of noncompliance with extant rules by actors. While the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) is clear on many of these issues, the real situation on the ground appears to vary. Many people subvert rules and refuse to comply with regulations.
