NIMASA Calls for Collaborative Efforts to Enhance Shipyard Growth and Competitiveness

NIMASA Calls for Collaborative Efforts to Enhance Shipyard Growth and Competitiveness

By prince Benson Davies

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s shipbuilding and shipyard development as part of efforts to deepen the blue economy and curb capital flight. This assurance was given at a stakeholders’ breakfast meeting organized by the Agency with the theme “Dissecting the Issues, Challenges, and Prospects in the Shipbuilding Segment – Discussing Funding Models, Incentives, and Policy Support for Shipyards Growth.”

The Executive Director, Operations, NIMASA, Engr. Fatai Taiye Adeyemi, noted that shipbuilding remains a capital-intensive, cyclical, and technically demanding sector that requires deliberate policy and financial interventions to achieve sustainable growth. He identified key challenges facing the sector, including restricted access to capital, shortage of skilled manpower, underinvestment in automation and green technologies, insufficient scale to compete globally, and policy inconsistency and procurement uncertainty.

Adeyemi emphasized the importance of shipyards in maritime decarbonization, as they are responsible for building energy-efficient vessels that meet the standards of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). He also stressed the need to sustain Nigeria’s recent return to Category C of the IMO Council.

The Managing Director of Starz Marine Limited, Engr. Greg Ogbeifun, commended the Federal Government for creating the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, describing it as a strategic step towards unlocking the full potential of the maritime sector. He called for deliberate government support for shipyard operators to enhance capacity, improve competitiveness, and attract investment.

Shipyard owners in Nigeria expressed willingness to collaborate with NIMASA to curb capital flight and build local capacity within the sector. They emphasized the importance of targeted support, skills development, and policy stability to enable shipyards to compete effectively.

Earlier in their goodwill messages, shipyard owners in Nigeria expressed willingness to collaborate with NIMASA to curb capital flight and build local capacity within the sector. They emphasised the importance of targeted support, skills development and policy stability to enable shipyards compete effectively.

Overall, stakeholders at the meeting expressed strong support for NIMASA’s renewed drive to support shipyard operators and deepen local shipbuilding capacity. Participants agreed on the need for coordinated funding mechanisms, incentives and policy consistency to address near, medium and long-term challenges in the sector.

The Agency’s renewed focus on shipyard development aligns with the provisions of the NIMASA Act, 2007, which mandate the Agency to promote maritime safety, shipping development and capacity building within Nigeria’s maritime industry. Supporting shipyard operations, indigenous shipbuilding capacity and associated infrastructure therefore remains central to its statutory responsibility to facilitate sustainable growth of the maritime sector and advance Nigeria’s blue economy objectives.