Exporters Seek Shippers Council Intervention To Review, Regulate Cost Of Barge Operations

Following the high cost charges of cargoes through waterways transportation, the Nigeria Chambers of Commerce Industry,Mines and Agriculture NACCIMA has stressed the need for Nigerian Shippers Council to review and regulate cost of barge operations .

The export group called for Council (NSC) to engage barge operators for downward review with a view to encourage faster forwarding of export inward the seaports .

Speaking at a sensitisation Programme put together by the council last week, Chairman ,NACCIMA , Export Group, Barrister Kola Awe lamented that the cost of barges can be estimated between N200,000 and N400, 000 respectively.

Awe stated that the high cost of barges have discourage healthy competition for international trade to thrive , stressing the need for the council to regulator and review charges

He called for more investors to patronise barge operators in order to create a competitive atmosphere which in turn may reduce cost and boost trade facilitation.

The exporter called on government to also improve on its infrastructure and promote favourable policies to boost agro export businesses.

“Government should look at the cost of barging because it is extremely expensive. What the barge operators are charging is an additional cost for exporters.

“Export is very competitive, it’s a competitive Industry. The same product we have here in Nigeria is same to Ghana and Togo but if there is infrastructure deficiency in Nigeria that means our cost of production will be higher and we won’t be able to compete with them in the international market.

“These additional cost are picking up by barges which ordinarily are supposed to be picking up by trucks which is lesser but with the barges and what they charge is an additional cost to the business and it makes us less competitive.

“We are looking at where government can come up in this area and advice the operators or probably have more barges for it to be competitive.

“How do we boost our export squarely depends on the infrastructure we have on ground. For instance cashew nuts is a very sensitive products and doesn’t allow for too much delay and because there is lot of congestion on the roads, trucks spend three weeks or a month on the corridors and when a truck spend such longer period on the road and the cashew is in an enclosed environment,then the moisture content will go”.

By Roland Ekama