Terminal�Seaports�operators demand 0.5% stevedoring funds for dockworkers� training

The Terminal Seaports Operators Association of Nigeria, (STOAN), has called for the deployment of the 0.5 percent paid into the Stevedore Fund for the training of dockworkers.

Speaking at the just-concluded, Shipping Correspondents Association of Nigeria in collaboration with the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, (MWUN), held in Lagos Chairman of STOAN , Dr. Vicky Hastrrup said that the is need for a befitting training centre of international standard with updated equipment for dockworkers in Nigeria

The charge, according to Hastrrup is collected in dollars, by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) but has not been used for its intended purpose, according to stakeholders.

The STOAN Chairman also said that dockworkers play a vital role in the economy and as such, require professional training to efficiently carry out their operations.

Haastrup further said: �Terminal operators pay 0.5% of cargo stevedoring charges to NIMASA, which should be used for dockworkers� training. What we are saying is that the money should be judiciously used for the purpose that it�s meant for. NIMASA should have a training school where you have all the facilities that will enable these dock workers to be appropriately and well-trained because that�s key.

�Terminal operators don�t mind training them. We do our own training, but we cannot build such a facility such as the training school, where they will be well-trained but NIMASA can do both practical and theory�, she added.

Haastrup, who is also the CEO of ENL Consortium, noted that Dockworkers play a vital role in the marine industry, and without them, you do not have a port. �The port sector is critical, and if the right policies are applied through this sector, the economy will become robust�, she stated.

Similarly, President -General of MWUN , Comrade Adewale Adeyanju condemned the trainers employed by NIMASA, which he described as uncertified and the certificates they issue are not up to global standards.

He said:�The professionals they bring to train the dockworkers are not capable. Even the certificates obtained are not up to global standards. It is only until our seafarers travel to Ghana to train that their certificates are recognised globally”.

He warned that untrained dockworkers are accidents waiting to happen at the ports.

Commenting on the development, President of National Association of Stevedore, Bolaji Sunmola, said that while NIMASA gets 0.5 percent, the Nigerian Ports Authority, (NPA) gets 10 percent.

Sunmola however disagreed with STOAN, saying that the levy is not purely for training of dockworkers.
He said: “Dockworkers can tap from the 0.5 percent stevedoring levy, as NIMASA is also supposed to render other services; but are they rendering these services?�.