From Anthony Nwachukwu, Lagos
In solidarity with the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) campaign for sustainable development in the maritime sector, the Minister of Transportation, Dr. Mu’azu Sambo, has restated Nigeria’s commitment to achieving greener shipping.
Sambo, who spoke ahead this year’s World Maritime Day (WMD) holding Thursday, assured that Nigeria will not lag behind in the global move towards greener shipping, while urging maritime sector stakeholders to begin exploring ways to transition into a greener and more sustainable future.
Also, the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Bashir Jamoh, said the theme of this year’s WMD, “New Technologies for Greener Shipping,” was in line with the agency’s mission of achieving cleaner oceans in developing shipping in Nigeria.
He noted that NIMASA was already implementing the call by the IMO Secretary-General, Kitack Lim, for developing countries to adopt green technology. According to Lim, the 2022 WMD theme “reflects the need to support a green transition of the maritime sector into a sustainable future, while leaving no one behind.
“The theme provides an opportunity to focus on the importance of sustainable maritime sector and the need to build back better and greener in a post-pandemic world.”
Jamoh noted that “Nigeria, represented by NIMASA, as an active member-state of the IMO, is involved in the processes of creating new international agreements and protocols to address environmental issues such as marine pollution, oil spills and emissions from the shipping industry.”
The 2022 WMD theme is linked to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDGs 13 and 14 on climate action and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources.
It is also associated with SDG 9 on industry, innovation and infrastructure, as well as SDG 17, which highlights the importance of partnerships and implementation to achieve these goals.
