The Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency (NPERA) has unveiled 30, 60 and 90-day targets as part of measures to guide its transition from the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) and drive reforms aimed at improving efficiency, reducing costs and enhancing the competitiveness of Nigeria’s port sector.
The Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency, (NPERA), Dr. Akutah Pius Ukeyima, disclosed this when a delegation of the Congress of Nigerian Maritime Media Practitioners (CONMMEP) visited the agency to seek clarification on its new mandate, ongoing transition and priorities for the maritime sector.
Ukeyima said the Nigerian Port Economy Regulatory Agency Act 2026, which repealed the Nigerian Shippers’ Council Act, Cap N133 of 2004, established NPERA as a new regulatory institution with a broader mandate over the port economy.
He stressed that the development was not merely a change of name or institutional identity, but a fundamental restructuring of port economic regulation in Nigeria.
According to him, while the former Nigerian Shippers’ Council was principally established to protect the interests of shippers, including negotiating freight rates and port charges and promoting the development of shippers’ associations nationwide, NPERA has been assigned a broader regulatory responsibility covering the port economy.
The NPERA boss explained that following the concession of Nigerian ports in 2006, concerns emerged over the roles of government agencies operating simultaneously as regulators and service providers.
He said the development eventually resulted in the appointment of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council as the interim economic regulator of the ports in 2014, pending the enactment of legislation to give the regulatory function a statutory foundation.
Ukeyima said the passage of the NPERA Act had now provided that legal framework, adding that the agency had developed a transition timetable covering the first 30, 60 and 90 days, as well as 100 days, one year and beyond.
He assured that stakeholders would be carried along throughout the transition, while major policy directions would be guided by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy.
NPA to Take Over Inland Dry Ports
The NPERA DG disclosed that one of the immediate directives from the Minister was for the Shippers’ Council to hand over the inland dry ports it had been promoting across the country to the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
He said discussions were already ongoing with the NPA Managing Director to ensure the implementation of the ministerial directive.
Ukeyima further disclosed that Section 51 of the new law provided for the preservation of existing contracts and unresolved matters, as well as the protection of the offices and employment of existing appointees and workers during the transition.
He added that one of NPERA’s immediate priorities was to complete the transition from the Nigerian Shippers’ Council to the new agency within the first six months of implementation of the Act.
This, he said, would be undertaken alongside the development and issuance of regulations required to operationalise the new regulatory framework.
Port Efficiency, Cost Reduction Top Agenda
The NPERA chief executive identified port efficiency as one of the agency’s major priorities, noting that several challenges confronting the sector were rooted in operational inefficiencies.
He said the presence of multiple government agencies within the port environment often resulted in excessive human interaction, contrary to the global trend towards digitalisation and automated processes designed to minimise human contact.
According to him, such inefficiencies increase the cost of doing business and weaken the competitiveness of Nigerian ports relative to those of neighbouring countries.
He also identified the high cost of port infrastructure and services as a major factor affecting Nigeria’s ability to compete effectively in international trade.
Ukeyima said the settlement of disputes and effective management of cases within the maritime sector were equally critical, given their implications for the overall cost and efficiency of doing business.
He said Nigerians would ultimately judge the impact of the new law by the extent to which they experienced tangible improvements in port efficiency, cost reduction and competitiveness.
Higher Penalties to Strengthen Deterrence
The NPERA DG said the new legislation had also established a stronger regime of deterrence through enhanced penalties for infractions.
He noted that some penalties under the repealed law were as low as N300 and N500, amounts he described as inadequate to deter violations in the modern maritime economy.
Under the new framework, he said, penalties for certain infractions could range from N500,000 to N20 million.
Ukeyima stressed that the objective of the higher penalties was not primarily punishment but deterrence against activities capable of undermining trade facilitation and the efficient functioning of the port economy.
FG Woos Investment for Port Modernisation
The NPERA chief executive also cited ongoing efforts to modernise Nigeria’s port infrastructure as part of broader developments in the maritime sector.
He said the Federal Government was actively pursuing foreign direct investment and other funding opportunities to accelerate port development, adding that some modernisation projects had reached advanced stages and were already before the Federal Executive Council.
He further disclosed that funds had been approved to support port modernisation.
According to him, the developments reflected the government’s commitment to law reform, institutional strengthening and the deployment of the maritime sector as a catalyst for economic diversification.
Ukeyima said the implementation of the NPERA Act would benefit not only port operators and other maritime stakeholders but also Nigerian consumers, given the critical role of ports and associated infrastructure in the movement of goods into and within the country.
CONMMEP Seeks Regular Media Engagement
Earlier, the President of CONMMEP, Udo Onyeka, said the delegation’s visit was aimed at strengthening the relationship between the maritime media and NPERA while gaining a clearer understanding of the agency’s mandate, reforms, priorities and vision.
Onyeka said the efficiency of Nigerian ports, the cost of moving goods, ease of doing business, competitiveness of Nigerian enterprises and growth of non-oil exports were closely linked to the effectiveness of institutions regulating the maritime sector.
He said maritime journalists had a responsibility to keep the public adequately informed while providing regulators and other stakeholders with a platform to explain their policies, achievements and challenges.
He identified shipping and logistics costs, port congestion, tariffs and charges, demurrage, protection of shippers, port digitalisation, the National Single Window, non-oil export development, regional maritime connectivity, maritime security and the blue economy as issues requiring sustained media attention.
The CONMMEP president called for regular briefings, access to credible data, technical explanations of policies and increased interaction between officials and journalists to improve the quality of maritime reporting and reduce misinformation.
He, however, stressed that the relationship between NPERA and the media should be founded on access, transparency, professionalism and mutual respect, rather than the media serving as a public relations platform for the agency.
Onyeka said CONMMEP expected the engagement to develop into a sustained relationship rather than remain a one-off meeting, with journalists continuing to scrutinise developments in the port economy while providing regulators and other stakeholders with opportunities to explain their policies and actions.
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