The United States Coast Guard (USCG) has commended Nigeria and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (Nimasa) for its considerable progress in the implementation of the International Ships and Ports Facility Security (ISPS) Code.
This comes after USCG representative Joe Prince Larson and an International Port Security Programme team visited terminals and port facilities in Nigeria to ascertain the level of implementation of the code across the country.
The team had earlier conducted assessment visits to the Dangote Port and Lekki Free Trade Zones in Lekki, Lagos State, as well as private port facilities operated by Matrix and Julius Berger in Warri, Delta State.
While delivering an interim assessment report to Nimasa, Larson said Nigeria’s compliance with the ISPS Code ranked amongst the best globally.
“We had the pleasure of visiting Matrix and Julius Berger in Warri, Delta State, before proceeding to the Lekki Deep Seaport and Dangote Port in Lagos, with the overall assessment being very positive,” Larson said.
“We noted that there is a clear and deep understanding of the implementation of the ISPS Code in Nigeria, with the level of compliance observed to be on par with some of the best maritime nations globally. We will report our findings back to US Coast Guard headquarters accordingly.”
He said he was confident that Nimasa had the capacity to maintain the high standards attained.
Nimasa director-general Dayo Mobereola said the agency was committed to sustaining the improved compliance levels at ports, saying this had positively impacted Nigeria’s image internationally.
He said the agency would continue to support efforts under the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, to improve standards in the industry.
“I must express my happiness at the positive feedback we have received from the USCG delegation as it serves as a reward for the Federal Government’s commitment to developing the sector,” he said.
The USCG has consistently partnered with Nimasa to conduct on-the-spot assessments of the compliance level of Nigerian ports with the ISPS Code.
