Shippers’ Council Unveils Portal For Online Registration Of Port Users

Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has officially launched an online portal for the registration of all categories of regulated port users and operators in the maritime industry.

As part of efforts to establish and maintain data of port stakeholders in the country, the registration provides the nation’s port economic regulator a database of service providers that are genuine as well as shippers and other stakeholders operating in the Nigerian port system.

Speaking at the launch on Friday in Lagos, the Executive Secretary of NSC, Hon. Emmanuel Jime stated that the new platform guarantees a safe and secure business environment even as it eliminates the challenges of faceless stakeholders in the port system.

Jime noted that the event marks a milestone as the Council upgrades from manual registration to a fully automated registration platform.

“The platform we are launching is interactive in nature as physical interface is eliminated. From your desk in your office, you can register your company online without having to visit any Shippers’ Council office as long as you fulfil the requirements and make the necessary payments.”

“The registration exercise is in various categories and attracts a token fee as the motive is not to generate revenue. It is mandatory for all service providers and users to register and obtain a certificate of registration before they can be adjudged as legally operating at the nation’s seaports. It is therefore important to register with the NSC to avoid applicable sanctions,” the NSC boss said.

Also speaking, the Director of Consumer Affairs, NSC, Chief Cajetan Agu added that one of the responsibilities placed on NSC when it became the nation’s port economic regulator in 2014 was the obligation to register all port operators and port users.

“NSC offers a lot of services around training, education and capacity building programmes. The only people who will benefit from these services will be those who are registered with NSC,” Agu remarked.

The director equally described the online registration as an Know-Your-Customer (KYC) function of the Council, stressing that the era of faceless shippers, untraceable freight forwarders and other hidden service providers have ended.

He also posited that the Complaints Unit of NSC which attends to stakeholders’ challenges in port business and arbitration services by the Council will henceforth only be available to operators and port users registered with the Council.

The event also featured a step-by-step demonstration on how to register with NSC via the online portal, while the Executive Secretary of NSC, Hon. Jime also unveiled the User Guide for the service which was shared to all participants.

Others are : Off dock terminal operators, ICD operators, shipping line agencies, shipping companies and shippers.

The fee charges  range from N50,000 to N10,000 respectively.

 

By Roland Ekama