₦airaland Forum

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has assured Nigerian workers of a pay rise next year.

Ngige stated this in Awka, the Anambra State capital in an interactive session with journalists on Tuesday.

He said the various committees handling the minimum wage issue were working to arrive at something.

He said the minimum wage under Buhari would not be like any pay rise in the country.

The Minister said, “Minimum wage is a constitutional issue and is in the exclusive list.

READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/ban-land-importation-vehicles-may-cause-hardships/

TOPIC: Non-oil exports as panacea for economic recession

Entries Open: Monday 12th December 2016

Entries Close: Friday 23rd December 2016

Prize Presentation: 28th December 2016



Prizes:
Prize for the Best Overall Essay
Prize for Creative Writing
Prize for Research
Prize for Outstanding Essays

This competition is open to all and sundry.

Supported by Dangote Ports Operation, Nigeria Customs Service, Sifax Group.

To Participate, click link and download entry form

http://shipsandports.com.ng/n250000-cash-grabs-10th-ships-ports-annual-national-essay-competition/

TOPIC: Non-oil exports as panacea for economic recession

Entries Open: Monday 12th December, 2016

Entries Close: Friday 23rd December, 2016

Prize Presentation: 28th December, 2016



Prizes:
Prize for the Best Overall Essay
Prize for Creative Writing
Prize for Research
Prize for Outstanding Essays

It is open to all

Supported by Dangote Ports Operation, Nigeria Customs Service, Sifax Group.

To Participate click the link: http://shipsandports.com.ng/n250000-cash-grabs-10th-ships-ports-annual-national-essay-competition/

President Muhammadu Buhari has frowned at the high rate of illegal migration of Nigerian youths to European countries through the Mediterranean Sea.

Buhari made this known at the 32rd Annual Meeting of the Sahel and West Africa also to mark its week, organised by the Food Crisis Protection Network in Abuja on Monday.

The president, who was represented by Audu Ogbeh, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, called for an immediate stop to the action by Nigerians, saying it was unfair to European countries.

He said that agriculture revitalisation was a solution to the migration issue, while expressing the readiness of his administration to support farmers in order to boost local production in the country. READ MORE

http://shipsandports.com.ng/buhari-decries-high-illegal-migration-of-nigerians-through-mediterranean-sea/

Two Nigerian students have been found dead in a river in Tasik Taman Negara Loagan Bunut, Miri Malaysia.

The students, Amate Mohamed Amate, 26 and Emine-Imoh Daniel, 23 had been reported missing when a boat they were travelling in capsized on Sunday.

FreeMalaysia.com quoted Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department Director, Nor Hisham Mohammad, saying the bodies of Amate and Emine-Imoh were found at 12.45pm and 5.15pm some meters away from the scene of accident.

The corpse were sent to the Miri Hospital for a post-mortem.

The two victims were among six students from Curtin University, Miri, Malaysia, conducting observation and research on wildlife in the lake area when the boat capsized.
READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/2-nigerian-students-drown-malaysia/

Dear Compatriots,

Again the calendar of life has brought us into another period of celebration, and deep reflection. Celebration, because we are marking the birth of Prophet Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him), and deep reflection, because it is another opportunity of pausing, taking a deep breath and reflecting on the current realities before us.

First of all, I wish all Muslims a happy and memorable celebration of the birth of the great Prophet, through whose teachings, particularly on peaceful living, tolerance, sobriety, generosity, sacrifice and honesty, and wisdom, the nation has gained immensely in building a harmonious and prosperous society. The universal truths of the Prophet’s values remain unchanged. READ MORE

http://shipsandports.com.ng/read-full-text-president-buharis-2016-eid-el-maulud-message/

The Federal Government, through the Nigerian Customs Service, last week issued a directive banning the importation of cars through Nigeria’s land borders. The ban affects used and new cars. The order was clear that this action does not represent a total ban on importation of cars into the country, but a restriction of car importation to Nigerian seaports.

The ban has since generated a lot of debate with many condemning the action, especially those who are up in arms and have accused the government of being insensitive to the plight of small car dealers who, it is now becoming clear, are major beneficiaries of cars imported through the country’s land borders. MORE

http://shipsandports.com.ng/welcome-ban-land-border-car-importation/

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has confirmed that 53 persons were burnt to death in a motor crash that occurred on Thursday evening at Abudu town along Benin-Agbor-Onitsha express road.

It said eight vehicles, including one motorcycle,were involved in the accident.

Other vehicles are two commercial Toyota hummer buses, one Dyna truck, one tanker carrying petrol, one ford bus and one Toyota Corolla.

An eyewitness said security agents and officials of FRSC watched helplessly as the victims burnt to death as there was no fire service station at Abudu town, headquarters of Orhiomwon local government area.

A statement released by the FRSC Edo State Sector Command on Friday morning said five other persons sustained injuries and have been taken to the hospital for treatment.

The statement said everyone in the two hummer buses, Toyota sienna,and corolla car burnt to ashes.It attributed the cause of the accident to brake failure, which led to explosion from the tanker. DETAIL&PICS

http://shipsandports.com.ng/edo-tanker-accident-frsc-confirms-53-persons-burnt-dead/

The Police in Lagos on Thursday declared missing a father, mother and son after two boats collided in Badagry area of the state.

A statement by the police spokesperson in Lagos State, DSP Dolapo Badmos, said that the actual number of passengers aboard the ill-fated boats was yet to be ascertained.

“At about 8: 30 pm on Dec. 7, a canoe with passengers that took off from Pathfinder Jetty on Badagry Marina heading to Gberefu Beach collided with another fibre boat coming from Iyafin area in Badagry.

“The two boats capsized while the two operators were safe but the passengers are yet to be recovered.

READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/father-mother-son-missing-two-boats-collide-badagry-2/

The Lagos State Government on Thursday said it was ready to roll out Lake Rice on December 15 to residents at N13,000 per 50kg towards the Yuletide celebrations.

The Special Adviser on Food Security to Governor Akinwumi Ambode, Sanni Okanlawon, made the disclosure in Lagos during the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) National Agriculture Stakeholders Summit.

Okanlawon said that sales of the rice would be made at all the 57 Local Government Areas and Local Council Development Areas in the state to ensure proper distribution.READ FULL

http://shipsandports.com.ng/christmas-lagos-sell-rice-n13000/

Going to work by boat or ferry or just taking a pleasure ride on the waterways? The following tips will help you stay alive:

1.Watch the weather: If you notice darkening clouds, volatile and rough changing winds or sudden drops in temperature, play it safe not going on board until the weather clears.

2. Look around the boat or ferry to be sure it is seaworthy

3.Ask for, and use, a life jacket: Did you know that the majority of drowning victims are the result of boaters not wearing their lifejackets? Life jacket is not a decoration, wear it!

4.Obey instructions: Boat operators are required to provide a safety briefing to all passengers about safety equipment and emergency procedures — it is the law. Make sure the operator provides this safety briefing, and listen carefully.
READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/ride-safely-boat-ferry/

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara on Wednesday said that about 80 per cent of corrupt cases in Nigeria have been identified to have come from the crude oil sector.

Dogara stated this during the inauguration of an ad-hoc committee of the House set-up to investigate an alleged undeclared $17 billion crude oil exports to global destinations.

The Speaker who was represented at the occasion by the deputy speaker Suleiman Lasun Yusuff said if federal government was able to curb all oil related corruption in Nigeria , the country would have reduced about 80 per cent of corrupt cases.
READ MORE
http://shipsandports.com.ng/80-corruption-cases-traced-oil-sector-dogara/

The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) said on Wednesday that it would embark on a three-day warning strike in 2017 if oil and gas companies failed to address workers’ welfare.

NUPENG President, Igwe Achese, who did not disclose the date in a statement signed in Lagos, said the union took the decision after its National Executive Council meeting.

According to Achese, the union issued a 21-day ultimatum for the Federal Government intervention in the labour issues with multinationals operating in the oil and gas sector.

He said among contending issues was the non-payment of terminal benefits to 48 contract staff.

He said 250 contract staff terminated in Lagos and Port Harcourt by the Nigeria Agip Oil Company (NAOC) were not paid.
READ DETAILS http://shipsandports.com.ng/nupeng-plans-warning-strike-workers-welfare/

Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, Tuesday disagreed with the Senate over the plan of the upper chamber to set up a National Transport Commission (NTC).

The Senate said the commission was meant to regulate the transport sector of the economy, while Amaechi insisted that the Nigerian Shippers Council should be empowered to carry out the responsibilities of the proposed agency.

Amaechi spoke at a public hearing on National Transport Commission Bill.

The public hearing was jointly held by Land Transport, Marine Transport and Aviation committees of the Senate.

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Land Transport, Senator Olugbenga Ashafa, who chaired the hearing, said that new commission will formulate transport policies for the government and private sector.

READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/amaechi-senators-disagree-national-transport-commission-bill/

The Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi and the All Progressives Congress (APC) led federal government of plans to assassinate Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State.

The party explained that the withdrawal of the security detail to the governor on Monday was to expose him to danger of assassination and possibly intimidate him to succumb to “their rigging plans” over the national and state assembly re-run elections slated for December 10, in the state.

The Spokesman of the Caretaker Committee, Prince Dayo Adeyeye in a statement on Tuesday, described the act as despicable, a complete affront and declaration of war on Rivers people using the apparatus of state.
READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/pdp-says-transport-minister-rotimi-amaechi-planning-kill-governor-wike/

The Senate and some stakeholders Monday showed displeasure over the absence of Comptroller General of the Nigeria Custom Service (NCS), Hameed Ali at a one-day public hearing on “A Bill for an Act to Repeal the Customs and Excise Management Act Bill 2016.”

The public hearing, organized by the Senate Committee on Customs, was held to articulate ways and means to repeal the 58-year Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA) in order to enhance the dwindling efficiency of the body.

The leadership of the Senate, committee members and the stakeholders were taken aback when they discovered that Ali did not only stay away from the crucial public hearing but failed to send a senior Customs official as his representative
READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/customs-boss-ali-shuns-senate-invitation-repeal-customs-act/

The former Managing Director of Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC), Dr. Kingsley Usoh has accused Nigerian freight forwarders of incompetence and lack of professionalism in the discharge of their duties.
Speaking exclusively to SHIPS & PORTS DAILY last week, Usoh said, “Anybody who lost his job or retired ends up being a freight forwarder. Most of them don’t know their right from left. They only know how to bribe Customs.”
Usoh advocated the setting up of a school dedicated to training freight forwarders to induce professionalism in the system.
Read the full interview below:

You left Nigerian Shippers Council 20 years ago, how have you managed life after retirement?
I have not retired. I am still working, studying, reading and researching. I just launched a new book including others that I have written so it is difficult to say I have retired. Business is business whether it is owned by government or private. The only difference is that while in public sector, it is what the man at the top wants done that you must do but when in the private sector, you can do it in your own way.
READ MORE http://shipsandports.com.ng/nigerian-freight-forwarders-know-bribe-customs-usoh/

Last year was bad for the operations of shipping lines and port operators but this year has been worse. Whilst the slowdown in the shipping business, as with the oil and gas industry, is an evolving global trend for which many ‘experts’ have failed to offer plausible explanation; the peculiar political and economic turmoil beleaguering Nigeria since 2014 has posed more daunting challenges for operators in both sectors in the country.

There has not been any major investment in Nigeria since 2014 largely due to the impending 2015 general elections. The uncertainty surrounding possible outcome of the election created the investor lethargy of 2014. The reluctance of investors to undertake long-term commitments became more pronounced in the first half of 2015. However, with successful conduct of the presidential elections, hopes of a quick recovery and return of investors became high. Economic theorists projected three-month recovery period but as it turned out, they were dead wrong. The government of the day was content chasing stolen wealth rather than creating new values. The uncertainty in the operating environment fuelled by lack of policy direction from the new government has negatively impacted the maritime business both on the seaside and the landside. READ MORE

http://shipsandports.com.ng/egg-eaters-dont-know-tough-lay-one/

The Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi Friday kicked against plans by President Muhammadu Buhari to seek approval of the Senate on the $30 billion loan request.

The former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor said even if the Senate gave their ascent to the loan, no country or global financial institutions would be willing to grant the loan request.

Sanusi during policy dialogue forum organised by the Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy and Development (SCDDD), in Abuja disclosed that for a nation that has five exchange rates, it would be difficult for such request to scale through. READ MORE

http://shipsandports.com.ng/sanusi-advises-buhari-jettison-30b-loan-plan-3/

Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo has decried the poor attitude of multinational oil companies operating in the state toward the welfare of their host communities.

Obaseki made the disclosure while hosting the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (UpStream) when the committee members paid him a courtesy visit on Friday in Benin.

According to him, the impact of multinational oil companies operating in the state is not felt anywhere.

He said that the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) was the heart of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and was located in the state but that its impact was never felt in the state.MORE STORY&PICS
http://shipsandports.com.ng/major-oil-companies-neglect-host-communities-obaseki/

The Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemical Company (KRPC) on Friday began the training of 100 unemployed youths in various skills’ under its Youth Empowerment and Skills’ Acquisition Programme.

The training, the eighth under the programme, was targeted at some of the unemployed youths from the company’s host communities.

KRPC Executive Director, Services, Alhaji Abdullahi Idris, said the more than 900 youths had benefited since the programme was introduced in 2008.

According to him, the programme is part of the company’s corporate social responsibility and is designed to support government’s efforts in poverty eradication, containing youth restiveness and tackling unemployment.

Idris said the training covered more than 16 trades that include : Plaster of Paris (POP), welding and fabrication, plumbing, pipe-fitting, electrical installation, rewiring, carpentry, woodwork, and fashion design. It also includes : poultry farming, auto-mechanic, auto- spray painting, handset READ MORE
http://shipsandports.com.ng/kaduna-refinery-offers-skills-training-100-unemployed-youths/

The Chancellor of Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo, Most Rev. Peter Akinola, has called on the Federal Government to enforce a strict ban on importation of goods that could be produced in the country.

Akinola made the call on Wednesday in Oyo at the 8th convocation ceremony of the university in Oyo.

The 319 students were awarded first degrees, with 16 graduating in first class category, 66 in second class upper division, 125 in second class lower division and 111 in third class.READ MORE
http://shipsandports.com.ng/peter-akinola-calls-ban-importation-locally-produced-goods/

Nigeria’s economic challenges may be far from over as Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo yesterday said the size of the 2017 budget was not big enough to make a significant difference in the nation’s economy. He put the figure of the 2017 Appropriation Bill yet to be presented to the National Assembly at about N7trillion.

Osinbajo who is the Chairman of the Economic Management Team spoke during a tour of some firms in Sagamu, Ogun State on Thursday.

A transcript of his speech at one of the firms was made available to journalists by his spokesman, Laolu Akande. READ MORE
http://shipsandports.com.ng/osinbajo-says-2017-budget-too-small-to-make-any-difference/

The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, has pledged to improve reserves and production capacity of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company.

Dr. Baru made the pledge in a statement by Ndu Ughamadu, NNPC Group Managing Director, Group Public Affairs Division, in Abuja on Thursday.

Baru described NPDC, which is the corporation’s exploration and production subsidiary, as showing a conspicuously excellent growth in its proven reserves.

He told Governor Godwin Obaseki during a courtesy visit in Benin, that he would expand NPDC footprints within the nation’s upstream sub-sector of the nation’s oil and gas industry.READ MORE
http://shipsandports.com.ng/nnpc-increase-oil-gas-reserves/

You too may soon be able to feel what it was like to hit an iceberg on the Titanic.

Construction of a life-size replica of the doomed passenger ship began in China’s southwestern Sichuan province on Wednesday with a keel-laying ceremony and fireworks to mark the occasion.

It is part of Star Energy Investment Group’s plans for a tourist resort along the Qijiang River in Sichuan’s Daying County.

And it will eventually come with a simulation of the iceberg collision that sank the original ship in the Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912.READ MORE
http://shipsandports.com.ng/hit-iceberg-china-group-readies-titanic-simulation/

If you buy a stolen car unknowingly, you could lose the car and your money. You may also be prosecuted for receiving stolen vehicle. The following tips may help you stay out of trouble when buying a vehicle:


For Foreign used cars
1. Ask for the original Customs papers and do a VIN check on the vehicle
2. Buy only from a reputable car dealer
3. Check for repainting of the car, especially the bonnet area where it is hard to re-spray
4. Check the glass for any engraving. READ MORE
http://shipsandports.com.ng/how-to-avoid-buying-a-stolen-vehicle/

Oil prices rose on Wednesday ahead of an OPEC meeting later in the day, with members of the producer cartel trying to thrash out an output cut to curb oversupply.

International Brent sweet crude was trading at 46.85 dollars per barrel .

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up at $45.52 a barrel.

Traders said markets were jittery, and that prices could sharply swing either way depending on developments at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meeting in Vienna. Read details

http://shipsandports.com.ng/oil-prices-rise-ahead-opec-meeting/

The federal government has assured private investors in the transport sector of support through the provision of conducive atmosphere for their businesses to thrive.

Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi gave the assurance on Monday at the maritime stakeholders’ appreciation night organised by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council.

The minister who was represented by the permanent secretary of the ministry, Zabiu Zakari commended the council for hosting the private sector saying that such initiative is an important means of adding value to the sector. Read more

http://shipsandports.com.ng/fg-support-private-investors-transport-sector-amaechi/

Nigeria spent the sum of $1bn as subsidy on kerosene last year, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo said on Tuesday.
According to him, the massive dependence on kerosene and firewood by millions of households across the country made the Federal Government to spend such an amount subsidising the commodity.

Osinbajo, who spoke at the Domestic Liquefied Petroleum Gas Stakeholders’ Forum organised by his office in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources in Abuja, explained that the low level consumption of the LPG by Nigerians was a major reason for the high demand for kerosene and firewood
http://shipsandports.com.ng/1bn-spent-kerosene-subsidy-2015-osinbajo/

Before the end of 2017, Nigeria will begin to export rice to other countries, the Central Bank of Nigeria has said.

The Acting Director, Corporate Communication of CBN, Isaac Okoroafor, said this on Tuesday during a sensitisation/awareness programme for farmers in Bayelsa State on the apex bank’s Anchor Borrowers’ Programme.

Okoroafor, who said the CBN’s ABP had started yielding fruits, insisted that with the progress so far recorded by the CBN through its agricultural financing policies, the country would begin to export rice by next year.READ MORE

http://shipsandports.com.ng/nigeriall-begin-export-rice-2017-cbn/