The Nigerian Shippers Council has asked the Federal Government and stakeholders in the sector to adopt the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development 10-point action plan in order to facilitate exports.

This call was made by the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Hassan Bello, at a workshop in Lagos.

Part of the UNCTAD action plan includes uninterrupted shipping, keeping the ports open, projecting international trade of critical goods and speeding up Customs clearance and trade facilitation.

It also includes electronic submissions and paperless transactions.

Bello stressed the need for rail to connect the ports in order to make Nigeria become an attractive destination for exports.

He added that a Standard Operating Procedure had been developed to make shipping easier for exporters.

He said, “We cannot rely on the road alone. Look at what we are facing with containers, roads, charges, and so on.

“The NSC has developed a Standard Operating Procedure between the Nigerian Railway Corporation and the terminals. For any trip by rail, we knock off 38 trucks from the road.”

Bello said this would help to create an export regime for the benefit of dry ports.

Joseph Olaoluwa