Mustapha made the call during the Stakeholders’ Appreciation Night organised by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) in Lagos recently.
Mustapha, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Political and Economic of the Office of the Secretary to the Federal Government, Mr Gabriel Aduda, said regulatory framework was a key element in the transport sector.
“The transport industry sector reform should unbundle the existing tripartite roles of public agencies; as investors, operators and regulators create robust resources for the maritime industry.
“The benefits of Multi-Service Regulations in a growing economy like Nigeria, among others, include the following: the economics of scale; sharing of fixed costs; and other resources.
“The benefits of regulation also include building expertise in cross-cutting regulatory issues such as tariff adjustment, rules and competition and smart inter-modal regulations that will reduce over-dependence on one sector,’’ Mustapha said.
He added that a robust intermodal regulation should cover rail, water and land transportation, saying that the regulation should also promote effective competition and economic efficiency.
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Mustapha said that there was a need to enhance safety standards and at the same time preserve the environment.
He explained that the National Assembly had passed the National Transport Commission Bill earlier this year but the government was sorting out some technicalities and use of language that would border on the overlap of functions with other agencies and be clearly delineated.
The Secretary to the Federal Government explained that as soon as that is sorted, “we should have a befitting law for the good of the whole.’’
He said that the Executive was committed to playing its role in the passage of the bill into law.
In his welcome address, the Chairman, Governing Board of the NSC, Mr Mai-Mala Munu, commended the stakeholders for cooperating with the stakeholders in the maritime sector of the Nigerian economy.
Munu, who was represented by a Board Member of the NSC, Mr Seyi Oduntan, said that the providers and the users of the shipping services should ensure a level playing field for stakeholders in the sector.
He said that the NSC encouraged hard work and expressed concern about the constant congestion on the port access road.
Munu said that the occasion was aimed at appreciating stakeholders’ perseverance in continuing their shipping business in Nigeria.
Also speaking at the occasion, the Chairman of Appreciation Night Committee, Mr Monsur Ahmed said that manufacturers were recognised internationally because trade played a major role in economies around the world.
Monsur Ahmed who also doubles as the President, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) explained that shipping was a key pillar of the maritime industry, noting that 90 per cent of the global trade was being conducted through shipping.
He added that Nigeria has not been able to tap all the benefits in the transport subsector due to lack of favourable policies.
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