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Erring Facilities Will Be Sanctioned, Says Jamoh
The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has directed all duly registered stevedoring companies with operational areas allotted by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), which are yet to start operation, to mobilise to their locations.
The directive, contained in a marine notice issued by NIMASA, said the affected companies should report any encumbrances to the Agency. This is in line with the Stevedoring Regulation, 2014, gazetted by the Federal Government of Nigeria, developed pursuant to the NIMASA Act 2007.
Head, Corporate Communications of NIMASA, Philip Kyanet, in a release made available to journalists in Lagos, disclosed that Director General of the agency, Bashir Jamoh, also notified all operators of ports, jetties, onshore or offshore oil and gas or bonded terminals, Inland Container Depots (ICDs), offshore dock terminals, dry ports and platforms, and other work locations to grant duly appointed stevedoring companies access to their premises for the commencement of operations.
It said only corporate bodies duly registered in Nigeria would be allowed to employ dock labour or engage in stevedoring work on board or from ships, insisting that such corporate entities must have satisfied the requirements for registration specified in the Stevedoring Regulation, 2014, and obtained a Stevedoring license from NIMASA.
“Every dock labour employer or stevedoring company shall provide proper and safe working conditions for the convenience and proper working of its employees and ensure that all stevedoring plants and equipment supplied and being used in their operations are safe and in good condition,” it added.
Employers of dock labour or stevedoring companies are mandated to provide adequate insurance cover for health, personal injury, loss of earnings, and compensation, relating to any incident affecting dock workers or stevedores in the course of the work of the dock labour employer or the stevedoring company.
