By Stephen Ubanna
Those who thinks that the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund, CVFF, controlled and managed by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, under the close watch of Dayo Mobereola, who incidentally was a Commissioner of Transportation, during the first term in office of Babajide Sawo-Olu, as the governor of Lagos state may have to do a rethink.
Mobereola, the NIMASA, Director General was said to have told the industry stakeholders there was no cause to worry as’’ the Funds is intact in the Single Treasury Account, TSA’’, in Olayemi Michael Cardoso, led Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.
A retired Executive Director of the Maritime Regulatory agency, the, had told The Value News that the only time the CVFF, had been touched by the Federal Government was during the Administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, noting that no other Nigeria President after him had ever taken money out from the Fund to solve any national problem, meaning that nothing has happened to the CVFF, lodged in the CBN till date.
This may have given the NIMASA, Director General, the audacity to make a bold statement that contrary to a recent report making the rounds alleging that the CVFF, have disappeared in CBN, describing it as both ‘’misleading and false’’. The NIMASA, Chief Executive Officer, CEO, who could not hide his feelings was said to have told those that cares to listen that the CVFF, held in the agency account at the CBN, is ‘’intact and accounted for between 2003, till date.
He was emphatic that ‘’there was nothing like the disappearance of CVFF, or illegal transactions with the Funds, between 2003, when it, was established by the then President, Olusegun Obasanjo and now, that President Bola Ahmed, who incidentally was a former Lagos state governor is in office.
Note that the source of funds for the CVFF, is from a 2% surcharge of the contract sum performed by any vessel engaged in coastal trade, tariffs, fines, and license fees and any other amount that may be determined and approved by the National Assembly and collected by NIMASA, in line with the Cabotage Financing Funds Guidelines that was said to have been issued by the FG, in 2006.
The NIMASA, boss, was said to have described those peddling such dangerous rumours as being unfair to the agency which is doing everything within its powers’’ to revive the nation’s shipping sector’’, insisting that ‘’the misinformation is a figment of the authors imagination’’.
Giving assurance that the agency will ensure that the CVFF, is fully utilized ‘’to serve the statutory purpose to which it was established in 2003,’’ to expand the capacity of indigenous maritime operators to enable effective participation in the county’s maritime activities and transactions’’.
Participation of indigenous shipping ship owners, an insider had confirmed encompass all the maritime-related activities which includes offshore, onshore, port activities, shipping transport, construction, repairs and associated maintenance.
There is no gain saying the fact that the participation of the indigenous shipping operators over the years appears to have been severely constrained by financing challenges due to the significant capital outlay required for vessel acquisition and other maritime infrastructure needed for the different delivery of services.
The NIMASA, helmsman was said to have assured the indigenous ship owners who are worried over the delay in the disbursement of the Funds despite former President Muhammadu Buhari’s Approval in 2022, of’’the safety of the Funds under the CVFF, in CBN’’.
Until he vacated office as the then minister of Transportation overseeing the nation’s maritime sector, in May 29, 2003, Muazu Jaji Sambo, an Engineer, had said that Funds available for disbursement to the Local ship owners were slightly over N16 billion in loc currency and 350 million in US, dollars.
Going by the initial arrangement on ground for the disbursement of the Funds,in 2022, applicants of the Funds would make an equity contribution of 15% while NIMASA, would make an equity Contribution of 35% and 50% would be provided by the banks.
The then President Buhari, was said to have given approval to five Commercial banks comprising of Union, Zenith, Plaris, Jaiz and united Bank for Africa, UBA plc, Pan African Bank, as the appointed primary lending institutions for the disbursement of the Funds.
As a prelude for the disbursement of the Funds to the Local ship owners, the Taraba state born politician and the immediate past minister of Transportation, was said to have commenced liaison with Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, the former minister of Finance and National Planning, and Godwin Emefiele, the embattled former governor of CBN, currently in the custody of the Department of State Services, DSS, for the implementation and disbursement of the Funds but that was how far they could go.
With the ministerial support to NIMASA, by past ministers of Transportation and the newly established ministry of Marine and Blue Economy overseeing, overseeing the nation’s maritime sector, may have encouraged the agency to have gladdened the heart of the indigenous ship owners when it sounded it loud and clear that the it will continue’’ to manage the Funds with the utmost responsibility’’, noting that there are no irregularities or illegal activities surrounding the CVFF .
Appealing to the Nigerians to disregard the rumours concerning the disappearance of the CVFF, in CBN, Mobereola, the NIMASA, boss was said to have urged the people to continue thrusting the agency’s ability ‘’to uphold the country’s maritime sector’’.
Osagie Edward, an Assistant Director and the agency spokesperson, who had alluded to the fact that the CVFF is a Fund established under section 42 of the Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act, 2003 to promote the development of indigenous ship acquisition capacity and to provide credit facilities to local maritime operators had said that the agency will never fail in its responsibility.
The NIMASA, spokesperson may have spoken the mind of the Director General who had repeatedly said that that the agency is committed ‘’to transparency, accountability and the advancement of the nation’s maritime sector not to worry about the safety of the CVFF, in CBN.
Last May, Oyetola Adegboyega, a former governor of Osun state and now minister of Marine and Blue Economy, had told the industry stakeholders of the ministry’s plan ‘’to unlock the CVFF, which was said to have grown phenomenally to US $700 million in the NIMASA, TSA, account in CBN, for disbursement to support the growth and development the country’s shipping businesses.
To ensure that only wholly-owned indigenous shipping companies are eligible for a loan or guarantee under the CVFF scheme, may have informed why the CVFF, 2006, Guidelines had clearly stated that consideration for financial assistance by eligible applicants would be limited ‘’to acquisition of vessels for the use in domestic and coastal trade, facilitation of vessel charters for use in domestic/coastal trade, Development of shipyard/maritime infrastructure for construction, repairs and maintenance of vessels, and auxiliary projects designed to improve local tonnage capacity and shipyards’’.
