The newly appointed Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Bashir Jamoh, on Tuesday, took over the reins of leadership of the agency and promised to consolidate on the gains of his predecessor, Dakuku Peterside.
Delivering a speech shortly after taking over, Jamoh eulogised Dakuku for turning around the fortunes of NIMASA and enforcing a knowledge transfer policy on the agency.
According to Bashir Jamoh, “Today marks a turning point in the history and existence of NIMASA. It is my pleasure to welcome you all to NIMASA as I take the mantle of leadership of this great and strategic agency as it’s 6th Director General.
“I am confident that with your continuous support, and the calibre of persons in the incoming executive management and Board, the agency will achieve the ideals that informed it’s the establishment in line with global best practices.
“As you already know, NIMASA has the core mandate of promoting and regulating shipping in the country. Concomitant with this mandate is the responsibility of ensuring the safety of the Nigerian maritime domain for ease of maritime transportation, which is one of the critical catalysts for economic development.
“It is in the realisation of this, and in pursuit of the Next Level agenda of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration that I urge you all to join hands with us to build an enduring and prosperous maritime sector.
“On this note, I will like to thank my predecessor, Dr Dakuku Peterside and indeed the outgoing Board of the agency for their resilience, team spirit and vision to make NIMASA a leading maritime light on the African continent.
“I must acknowledge the great strides we have made in the area of maritime safety and security, particularly with the Deep Blue project and ensuring the enactment of the anti-piracy law.
“On expectations from us, we shall hit the ground running immediately. We shall study our handover notes diligently to ensure continuity of leadership for the maritime sector.
“I can assure you that we will consolidate on these efforts and take them further, as we.continue to pursue the ideals of a viable Blue Economy for our country.”
Earlier, former DG of NIMASA, Dakuku Peterside listed the gains of the agency under him in four years.
In his words, “We came with a broad agenda in 2016. we consistently focused on staff training both local and foreign and improved working conditions and welfare of our staff. What we boast of today are staff who are more knowledgeable and that can compete with their peers at any level both locally and internationally.
“We championed the greatest reform in maritime Administration in the history of this agency. we changed the narrative and reinvigorated the industry and put NIMASA back on the international map.
“Today, our workers’ workaround with pride because they know the nation value their contribution and we received the support of the international community like the IMO.
“Today, the IMO has confirmed that we are the second-largest tonnage in Africa after Liberia. We are the first in Africa to put 7000 seafarers on Cabotage in one day. We are the first to publish the first maritime forecast and we have been doing that from 2019 till date and the next edition is ready to be made public.”
