Stakeholders in Nigerian maritime industry are to converge on Friday to discuss the implementation of the International Ship and Port Security (ISPS) Code and the primary international security standard in the nation’s port industry.
The event will hold at the International Maritime Press Centre of the Maritime Reporters’ Association Nigeria (MARAN) in Apapa, Lagos.
A seasoned master mariner and former Consultant to the International Maritime (IMO), Captain Abiodun Omoteso will make presentation at the event.
According to the Chairman of MARAN Seminar Committee, Mr Kayode Atofolaki, the event is being organized to enable the public and the international shipping community appreciate the level of security on the nation’s waterways and the port environment.
Atofolaki added that the one day seminar will discuss the level of Nigerian Maritime Administration And Safety Agency’s (NIMASA) Verification Inspection Exercise (VIE) across all Nigerian port facilities and security threat levels.
He noted: “The International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code) is a comprehensive set of measures to enhance the security of ships and port facilities.
“It was developed in response to the perceived threats to ships and port facilities in the wake of the 9/11 attacks in the United States. The ISPS Code is implemented through chapter XI-2 Special measures to enhance maritime security in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), 1974. The Code has two parts, one mandatory and one recommendatory.
“The purpose of the Code is to provide a standardised, consistent framework for evaluating risk, enabling Governments to offset changes in threat with changes in vulnerability for ships and port facilities through determination of appropriate security levels and corresponding security measures.”
It would recall that The United States Government has said that some Nigerian port facilities lacked effective anti-terrorism measures in place.
The country imposed Conditions of Entry (COE) on vessels calling from some Nigerian port terminals which are yet to comply with the International Ships and Ports Facility Security (ISPS) Code.
The United States Embassy in Nigeria in a statement also, declared that the COE would require affected vessels to meet certain security measures prior to entering U.S. ports.
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