The Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, has expressed Nigeria’s interest to seek re-election into Category “C” of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council, 15 years after it failed to be reelected into the world maritime regulatory body.
Nigeria has been elected into the IMO Council only three times – in 2000, 2007 and 2009 while all other attempts to return to it since the election in 2009 have failed.
Elections are held into all three categories every two years and Nigeria is eligible to contest elections into category C only but has in several occasions failed to secure a seat.
The minister, who dropped this hint at the 2024 World Maritime Day parallel event in Barcelona, Spain, noted that Nigeria has put in place the basic needs to develop the nation’s maritime industry in line with recognised global best practices.
The Head of Public Relations of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Edward Osagie, disclosed this in a statement yesterday.
The Director General of NIMASA, Dr Dayo Mobereola, assured that no stone will be left unturned to ensure success in the quest for IMO Category C membership at the next elections.
He said, “We at NIMASA have met with the IMO technical team and have commenced work on all identified grey areas so that Nigeria can address the gaps identified during the last audit by the IMO.”
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