Expansion of export opportunities in South-East crucial to NPA – MD

The Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority, Dr Abubakar Dantsoho, says the strategic positioning of Enugu as the gateway to the South-Eastern hinterland presents huge opportunities for the expansion of export opportunities which is the focal point of the NPA.

Dr Abubakar Dantsoho therefore implored traders and investors in the region and Nigeria at large to explore the tailor-made simplified export processes such as Export Process Terminal (EPTs) created by the Nigerian Ports Authority to promote export activities in the country.

Dr Dantsoho stated this on the occasion of the ‘NPA Special Day’ at the 36th Enugu International Trade Fair, with the theme of the year’s fair “Developing Nigeria’s Industrial Sector / SMEs for Economic Advancement and Global Recognition”.

He said the EPTs were established to simplify the hitherto burdensome process of exporting Nigerian goods, saying NPA has put measures in place to link value creators in the remotest part of the hinterland with the farthest clusters of demand anywhere on the globe.

According to him, the EPTs are a one-stop-shop for cargo consolidation, stuffing, documentation, packaging, certification and onward shipment through electronic call-up to the Ports in quick turnaround time. This has eliminated the duplications and bureaucratic overlaps that previously made Nigerian exports uncompetitive in the international market.

He said that as Nigeria’s foremost trade facilitation platform, the NPA is always proud to be associated with the noble cause that the trade fair represents, especially seeing that trade remains the most veritable tool for actualising most of our economic aspirations.

“To facilitate Port-Hinterland connectivity and create pathways for Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) to play in the export value chain, the EPTs are to be linked with Domestic Export Warehouses (DEWs) in synergy with the NEPC and relevant partners.

“To align with the ease of doing business orientation of the Federal Government and the theme of the year’s fair “Developing Nigeria’s Industrial Sector / SMEs for Economic Advancement and Global Recognition” we are aggressively simplifying our export processes to enable made-in-Nigeria goods transit through our Ports as seamlessly as possible,” said he.

The NPA MD further disclosed that to achieve the goal, the Authority is eliminating human interface which encourages underhand dealings by pursuing the full automation of NPA processes and procedures through the Ports Community System (PCS) which lays the groundwork for the implementation of the National Single Window (NSW).

“For clarity, the NSW is the global best practice for delivering the greatest value with the greatest ease by connecting all stakeholders in the trade value chain for seamless interaction at the push of a button,” Dr Dantsoho said.

Dr Dantsoho commended the Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines & Agriculture (ECCIMA) for the resilience to sustain the culture of hospitality and business friendliness that has continued to attract people from all over the globe to be a part of the Trade Fair which is deepening economic prosperity.