Dr. Bashir Jamoh, Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), stated that the agency is driving the $2.5 trillion blue economy market by disbursing $720 million Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF).
He stated that this comes as the agency prepares to give shipowners a maximum of $25 million each to purchase ships in order to provide the 350 million jobs that exist in the blue economy.
During the University of Lagos (UNILAG) Institute of Maritime Studies’ maiden yearly lecture, stakeholders called for more investment in the blue economy to navigate the economic threat posed by the global phasing out of crude oil.
‘From Crude to Blue – Nigeria’s Blue Economy: The Importance of Maritime Domain Awareness and Good Governance,’ was the theme and according to Jamoh, the world is working hard to phase out the fossil fuel industry due to the environmental and health consequences, putting Nigeria’s crude under severe economic threat.
According to Jamoh, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has expressed interest in participating in the funding of ships acquired by indigenous shipowners using the soon-to-be disbursed CVFF.
He stated that in order to accomplish this, NNPC offered to provide 9% of the 15% funding to be provided by shipowners as specified in the guidelines for the fund’s disbursement, allowing them to purchase new ships.
Jamoh went on to list some of the country’s assets that would ensure the use of the blue economy, including 853 kilometers of coastline, 8573 kilometers of inland waterways, six-port complexes, 21 oil terminals, over ten jetties, 200 nautical miles of exclusive zones, 200 million people, all consumers, and others.
According to NIMASA’s CEO, the blue economy generates $2.5 trillion in annual economic growth and includes all economic activities associated with the oceans, seas, harbors, coastal zones, inland water, rivers, and lakes, among other things.
According to him, opportunities in the blue economy that should be invested in include cargo operations, stevedoring services, warehousing/bonded terminals, haulage, shipbuilding, repairs brokerage, handling/management, cargo surveying, tank farms, packaging, marine insurance, bunkering services among others.
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