SDV rises to the challenge of Nigerian election demands

THE UPCOMING Nigerian elections have tested the infrastructure, resources and capabilities of everyone involved, not the least SDV Freight Services which has been responsible for the logistics of moving the registration forms and other vital equipment into the country in time for the big day.
It's a project that has pushed the limits of the company's expertise, and projects manager Nisa Dawood is more than satisfied that all is proceeding according to plan. The first aircraft of registration forms left Johannesburg on July 3. Since then SDV has dispatched a further six charters, each carrying 64 tons of cargo.
The project is a joint venture between Mchunu Mashinini & Associates, which specialises in the co-ordination of major events like elections, and The Image consortium of Nigeria. Forwarding major SDV was sub contracted for the handling of the international logistics for the event.
For the first time ever the papers were sourced in South Africa where they were printed in Cape Town, Durban and Gauteng. The first leg of the journey involved hubbing the cargo at SDV's Pomona warehouse for consolidation on Nigeria-bound aircraft. All the domestic logistics was handled by SKYNET.
The project by nature is highly time-sensitive, leaving no margin for error, and meeting the stringent deadlines has been the greatest challenge, says Dawood.
While the registration forms have been sourced locally, much of the equipment comes from the USA and Europe. This was also co-ordinated by SDV, whose international network played a role in clinching its involvement in the project.
Coming to terms with the vagaries of Nigerian customs and business practices was an interesting part of the process for Dawood, who as a foreigner had to be accompanied by an armed guard for the duration of her stay in Nigeria.
The infrastructure is good, but not excellent, she added.
"They have a two-lane highway, but at any time it will be filled with trucks, cars, donkeys, goats and pedestrians, which means a less than speedy transit time wherever you're headed."
But it's dealing with and overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges that keeps project specialists like SDV coming back for more, particularly when they can confidently announce, as in this case, that it's 'mission accomplished'.