The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) said it had directed its members not to pay the charges imposed on the controversial cargo tracking note by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council.
The President of MAN, Frank Jacobs, who disclosed this yesterday, said the association was opposed to it implementation and that it members would not pay for it.
This is coming as shipping companies have made it clear that every penny associated with the once scrapped and now reintroduced cargo tracking note would be borne by importers and exporters.
Already, the shipping companies have notified their customers to this effect.
The cargo tracking note, which was originally introduced in 2009 was scrapped on the orders of then President Goodluck Jonathan in October 2010 due to series of complaints by stakeholders over its lack of value-addition and extra cost burden.
The Nigeria Shippers’ Council, which introduced the controversial scheme this year after it was scrapped on the orders of the Federal Government in 2010, had stated earlier that it would not attract any charges only for it to turn around to slam various charges on imported cargoes. NSC slammed charges of $25 per container, $10 per vehicle, $0.2 per unit of break bulk, $1 per ton of imported cargo as cargo tracking note fees.
By this action, the NSC has imposed an additional N26.1 billion annual burden on Nigerian importers.
French container carrier, CMA CGM noted on its website that all import and export cargo are mandatorily subject to an Entry Summary (ENS) or Exit Summary (EXS) Number under the cargo clearing note.
The company advised shippers to obtain their cargo tracking note from a dedicated website as the ENS or EXS number would be required before their goods would be loaded and transported.
A source at the company’s Nigerian office told SHIPS & PORTS DAILY that the importers/exporters are expected to pay fully for the controversial cargo tracking note at the point of obtaining their ENS or EXS number.
“The burden of obtaining the ENS or EXS number lies on the owners of the cargo and payment would be done when they’re obtaining the numbers. Ours is to ensure that we ask for the numbers before loading any cargo. Importers and exporters will pay every penny of the charges,” the source who does not want to be named said.
The Shipping Association of Nigeria (SAN) members – representing the major Shipping Lines operating in Nigeria – has also said that the cost of the CTN would be fully borne by importers.
SAN Chairman, Mr. Val Usifoh said, “SAN members wish it to be clear that these additional costs will be eventually paid by the importers in Nigeria.”
Stakeholders including importers, freight forwarding associations and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) have all protested against the additional cost burden imposed by the cargo tracking note implementation. They have all variously called on the Federal Government to suspend the scheme until the controversies surrounding its implementation are resolved.
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