Against resistance from the private sector, the International Cargo Tracking Note (ICTN) can be re-introduced and implemented successfully in the Nigerian trade system if it can be designed to be flexible and adaptable to the needs of importers and other stakeholders in the shipping industry.
This was the position of Dr Eugene Nweke, Director, Research, Sea Empowerment Research Center, (SEREC) when he spoke at a roundtable to dissect the multiple issues of ICTN organised by the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (MARAN) held at its International Press Centre, Apapa, Lagos on Thursday.
Nweke at the roundtable themed: “Proposed International Cargo Tracking Note: A Second Look By Critical Stakeholders,” defended the implementation of ICTN against other leading shipping experts at the roundtable. He also called on relevant government agencies to undertake a robust stakeholders engagement for proper understanding of the benefits of ICTN so that adoption of the trade tool can be accepted and successfully implemented.
“It’s puzzling why some individuals in Nigeria oppose the International Cargo Tracking Note. Nigeria’s logistics performance index rating is often low due to its inability to effectively trace, track, and monitor cargo movement,” Nweke said.
He described ICTN as a trade tool that naturally demands compliance, maintaining that the use of ICTN would greatly enhance compliance to Customs processes and eliminate the current security threat coming from from loopholes in the country’s international trade system.
He said: “Between 2012 and 2014, compliance to trade regulations improved to 25%, but has now gone down to around 12.7% and one wonders why we are going down, instead of improving on trade compliance.
“For compliance to be attained, it begins with declaration, but you cannot get good compliance where there are no tools to drive it. The ICTN is the best tool to drive compliance to trade because it demands that the importers makes an undertaking regarding the exact nature of the cargo being imported.”
He noted that other countries in the West and Central Africa subregion which have successfully implemented ICTNs no longer contend with the kind of security issues Nigeria current faces.
Shipping stakeholders shortly after the MARAN roundtable on International Cargo Tracking Note (ICTN) at the International Press Centre, Apapa, Lagos, on Thursday.
According to The Nigerian Economy findings, the ICTN, also known as “waiver certificate,” is a shipping document mostly used in Central and West African ports, which contains essential information about the cargo being imported/exported and the ship.
This is the fourth time Nigeria is attempting to adopt ICTN after earlier efforts failed with landmark woes.
The current effort was initiated by the Presidency which mandated the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy to implement using the platform of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council.
However, leading customs brokers and shipping experts who opposed the adoption of ICTN maintained that the council has no legal backing to implement the ICTN. They also raised cost concerns which they feared could raise cost of goods and services and further heighten inflation in the country.
Lucky Amiwero, President of National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA) and CEO, Eyis Resources, stressed that the Nigeria Customs Service Act, 2023 empowers the Customs to implement any trade tool or process deem needful for ease of trade in Nigeria, maintaining that the Customs already has in place trade tools similar to the ICTN and as such, the country does not need any more adoption of the tool.
“The ICTN has been subsumed in the Nigeria Customs Service Act, 2023. Having it on another regulatory agency platform will create unnecessary bureaucracy, it cannot be useful and it will obstruct clearance of cargo,” he insisted.
Earlier in his welcome address, Godfrey Bivbere, President, MARAN, disclosed that as the country moved to reintroduce the ICTN, there must be fresh prospective to ensure that there are no duplication of efforts and transparency is prioritized.
“The time has come to resolve the controversies and come to a consensus. MARAN, as the leading maritime beat association in Nigeria, recognizes the importance of fostering dialogue and understanding among all parties involved,” he said.
Leading maritime journalists group, MARAN continues to provide platforms for engaging stakeholders in dissecting and resolving maritime issues to drive development of the sector.
