WAF Shipping Focus: Week 5
- Agwe Logistics Solutions
- Feb 8
- 4 min read
Cargo scanning operations carried out by the Swiss firm SGS at the Port of Douala-Bonabéri have been disrupted since 1 January 2026. The issues stem from conflicting legal interpretations concerning the contractual and institutional arrangements governing a vital part of Cameroon’s import, export, and transit system. The situation follows a reconfiguration of the scanning framework by the Port Authority of Douala (PAD), the public entity overseeing the country’s main port. As part of this process, PAD approved the deployment of a new operator, Transatlantic D S.A., a move that has gradually diminished SGS’s presence within the port. For shipping and logistics operators, the transition has introduced procedural changes and a period of operational uncertainty. This shift occurs as the Port of Douala remains central to Cameroon’s export-driven industrial and mining ambitions, while also functioning as a major transit hub for landlocked neighbouring countries. In such a context, predictable control mechanisms and clear regulatory oversight are vital to maintaining efficient logistics chains.
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Personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) BEECROFT have dislodged a criminal hideout in the Gidan Drama area of Agbo Malu, Apapa. The Commander of NNS BEECROFT, Rear Admiral Paul Ponfa Nimmyel said the raid was carried, 24 January 2026 following credible intelligence received by the Base on the presence of suspected drug peddlers in the area. Represented by the Executive Officer, Captain Idongesit Udoessien, Rear Admiral Nimmyel disclosed that several illicit substances such as cannabis sativa, codeine and other banned substances were recovered. He, however, noted that no arrest was made as the suspected drugs peddlers fled upon sighting the team. He added that the recovery of the illicit substances underscores the unwavering commitment of NNS BEECROFT to curtailing spread and use of illicit drugs among teaming youth which negatively affect their health and threaten national security. “
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The Federal Government has announced the commencement of Phase 1 of the National Single Window (NSW) Project, scheduled for launch on March 27, 2026, marking a decisive step toward reforming Nigeria’s trade ecosystem through technology, transparency, and smarter regulation. The National Single Window is a centralized digital platform designed to simplify and harmonize trade procedures by enabling traders to submit trade related information once, through a single interface, while relevant government agencies access, process, and approve the required documentation seamlessly. The initiative is expected to significantly reduce delays, eliminate duplication, curb inefficiencies, and lower the cost of doing business at Nigeria’s ports and borders. Speaking on the transformative potential of the project during the inauguration of the project on the 16th of April 2024, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu described the National Single Window as a cornerstone of Nigeria’s trade and economic reform agenda. “The National Single Window will change the way trade is done in Nigeria. It will replace fragmentation with coordination, opacity with transparency, and delay with efficiency,” says Presidency.
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Freight forwarders across Nigeria are set to come under a mandatory standardized freight service charge regime before the end of the first quarter of 2026, as the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) moves to overhaul the country’s cargo clearance cost structure. The Registrar of CRFFN, Mr. Kingsley Igwe, disclosed this during a recent briefing in Lagos, revealing that the initiative has received backing from the highest levels of government following consultations with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy. According to Igwe, the move is designed to tackle one of the sector’s longest-standing challenges, that is absence of a transparent and predictable mechanism for determining freight forwarding and logistics charges, which has often led to inconsistent pricing, delays, and disputes in port operations.
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The recent face-off between some shipping line agents operating in Nigeria and aggrieved stakeholders is a climax of years of agitation over what the users of shipping services refer to unfair and arbitrary imposition of charges on them. This agitation is an age-long issue, perhaps one of the most problematic issues that the regulators have had to contend with for decades. These charges involve imposition of unjustified fees, opaque pricing, and unapproved tariff hikes like extra documentation or handling costs, leading to high, unexplained container costs. It was this tendency to impose these charges that climaxed with the picketing of the offices of some shipping agents earlier in the year. And to save the nation from the embarrassment and also protect the sanctity of the nation’s maritime sector, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council called for a suspension of the charges, even as it called for more dialogue with stakeholders. In 2018, apparently reacting to the recent strike by road haulage operators in Lagos ports and the alleged culpability of shipping lines, the Nigerian Ports Authourity (NPA) also came hard on four of such companies, namely Maersk Line, Cosco, LANSAL and APS.
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The Chairman and Managing Director of Wide scope Logistics International, Dr. Segun Musa, has called for robust synergy among maritime industry stakeholders, warning that the industry’s continued fragmentation is stripping stakeholders of their influence on national policy. Speaking in Lagos during a courtesy visit by the Registrar of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), Mr. Kingsley Igwe, Musa stressed that a unified industry front is essential in shaping national policy. Dr. Musa, who also serves as the Vice President (Air and
Logistics) of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) questioned the persistent divide between major industry bodies such as NAGAFF, the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), and various transport unions.
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