The Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dakuku Peterside, has said that the Agency is on a mission of self recovery to actualise its core mandate.

A statement by the Head, Public Relations Department of the agency, Hajia Lami Tumaka, said the director-general stated this at a Stakeholders’ Forum in Lagos titled: ‘Repositioning the Maritime Sector for Greater Impact.’

Peterside urged stakeholders to collaborate with the agency in order to return the maritime industry to its pride of place in the Nigerian economy.

He assured the stakeholders of his commitment to move the sector forward, saying that the agency was about to draft a Medium Term Maritime Growth Strategy to cover the next three years.

The director-general said that the strategy would be stakeholder-driven, “which has necessitated the organisation of the forum.”

He said that NIMASA was undergoing structural, cultural and performance reforms.

Peterside said that the focus of the agency's performance would no longer be measured by how much revenue it derives but on how well it could stimulate the necessary growth of the sector for the benefit of indigenous operators and other Nigerians.

“Our performance will be service-based and not metric-based. The focal point of which will be to create the enabling environment to gainfully engage as many stakeholders as possible.”

He said that this was “with a view to creating wealth and generating employment,” Peterside thanked the stakeholders for turning out in their numbers for the agency to draw from their wealth of experience and assured them that their contributions would be noted and treated appropriately.

According to the statement, stakeholders who attended the event applauded the initiative and offered varying contributions aimed at charting a new roadmap for the development of the maritime industry.

The stakeholders promised to send in detailed written memoranda for the director-general’s consideration. (NAN)

•Photo shows Dr Peterside.