The minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, has set up a National Flag Carrier Technical Committee to establish a formidable, private-sector-led national shipping line.
This was disclosed by the special adviser, Media and Communications, to the minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr Bolaji Akinola, during the event to mark two years of Oyetola’s tenure as the minister, recently titled, “Recalibrating Nigeria’s National Shipping Capacity.”
According to Akinola, the public-private partnership promises to redefine Nigeria’s maritime future.
“In another bold strategic move, the administration is poised to launch a national shipping carrier through a robust public-private partnership that promises to redefine Nigeria’s maritime future.
“Oyetola’s foresight is clear: true maritime power rests on a nation’s ability to command its own seas and carry its own goods. To this end, he set up the National Flag Carrier Technical Committee to establish a formidable, private-sector-led national shipping line.
According to Akinola, setting up a flag carrier was to recapture the billions in freight revenue currently lost to foreign shipping companies.
“As with the planned disbursement of the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF), this ambitious initiative is more than a policy; it is an economic declaration.”
“Oyetola’s vision aims to recapture the billions in freight revenue currently lost to foreign shipping companies, generate thousands of jobs for Nigerians, and firmly anchor Nigeria as the unrivalled maritime hub of the West and Central African region.
“The Minister’s move is a generational commitment to national self-reliance and the retention of economic prosperity within our borders.”
