The Chairman, Senate Committee on Marine Transport, Sen. Wasiu Sanni, has expressed the National Assembly’s commitment to policies that would drive safe operations in the maritime sector.

Sanni said this during the commemoration of the 2024 World Maritime Day with the theme: “Navigating the Future: Safety First”.

He said that maritime safety was a national imperative, adding that there is need to embrace new innovation as the country improved on safety.

“As we look into the future, let safety be the guide to enable Nigeria be the leading maritime nation in the West and Central Africa,” Sanni said.

He urged agencies in the maritime sector to ensure compliance to international safety conventions.

He advised operators to make safety their guiding principle to position the country as a leading player in the global maritime community.

Sanni asked the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) to resubmit the petition concerning retired seafarers who had not been paid gratuity during the Nigeria National Shipping Line (NNLS) regime.

He assured the union that the senate would work with Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to ensure justice for the seafarers who had contributed to the growth of maritime industry.

The Director, Maritime Safety and Security, Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, Babatunde Bombata, said that maritime industry depended on the world’s ocean and waterways.

Bombata described the ocean and waterways as vital channels for international trade, innovation, and connectivity.

He said that safety was not merely an operational consideration, but the cornerstone upon which the future of the maritime industry must be built.

“The safe operation of vessels, the security and well-being of seafarers, the protection of the marine environment are also interconnected, with safety serving as a key factor in unifying trade.

“Without prioritising safety, we risk not only human lives but also the ecosystems and economies that rely on our oceans.

“In an era of rapid technology change, where innovations like autonomous vessels, renewable energy platforms, and artificial intelligence are reshaping the landscape, our commitment to safety must be unwavering,” he said.

According to him, these advancements present great opportunities, but they also introduce new risks.

“We must, therefore, ensure that these technologies enhance safety standards rather than compromise them, guiding us into a future where innovation and safety work hand-in-hand,” Bombata said.

He urged stakeholders to come together with the ministry in shared commitment to advance maritime operations, prioritising safety, innovation and sustainability.

Speaking earlier, the President of MWUN, Adewale Adeyanju, urged government to address the issue of the retired seafarers from NNLS who have not been paid their pensions after three decades.

He commended the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Alhaji Adegboyega Oyetola, for signing an MoU with the shipping companies and terminal operators to increase Seafarers’ minimum wage to N200,000

The Rector, Maritime Academy, Oron, Commodore Duja Effedua, said that the institution was navigating the future of the academy with quality training for cadets

He commended NIMASA for restructuring and adequately equipping the academy, and urged stakeholders to support the Federal Government to improve the standard of the school.

“For the first time in 42 years of the existence of the institution, we are now admitting foreign students based on the standard stimulators and other equipment put in place by NIMASA.

“I am also happy that the students of the academy who participated in the maritime essay competition organised by NIMASA, took the best runner with other nine shortlisted institutions.

“Our academy will also give you the student scholarship to complete his studies,”Effedua said.

In his good will message, Prof. Lawrence Awosika of Nigeria Institute of Maritime and Oceanography, commended Oyetola”s leadership of Marine and Blue Economy.

Report says that NIMASA appreciated 10 outstanding student from maritime universities and universities that offer maritime courses who participated in the NIMASA essay competition.

The students were rewarded with cash prizes on N500,000 each.

Yhe Nigerian Ports Authority also gave six students who participated in secondary school essay maritime competition laptops and cash prices up to N800,000.

The Inland Waterways Authority also gave a study trip to two runners up from the second school competition in Ghana and Porto- Novo (NAN).