Nigeria@60: Nwabunike calls on FG to support operators in the logistics business
Just as Nigerians are celebrating the country’s 60th Independence anniversary, Iju Anthony Nwabunike, National President, ANLCA in an independence message to Nigerians, stated that the roles of the logistics professionals in the import, export, and supply chain management has contributed to the government’s revenue drive of over N4 trillion by Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) as well as supporting the Nigeria Customs Service in sustaining its’ N1trillion yearly collection. Besides, the ANLCA National President stated that the logistics sector has the capacity for 50,000 direct and ancillary employments from the ports, airports, border stations, delivery chain linking warehouses and market, if properly harnessed.
By Ovie Edomi
He therefore called on Nigerians to tap the potentials in both the logistics and maritime sectors and urged professionals as well as business men to contributed more in making Nigeria greater and united.
He therefore called on logistics experts to play critical roles in E-commerce and urged members to see themselves as part of the move to diversify Africa’s largest economy from a totally oil dependent country to a viable country making sustainable revenue from non oil sectors.
While calling on members and professionals to keep up their patriotic acts of engaging only in legitimate deals and prompt payment of taxes to government, he equally called on Nigeria State to give support to operators in the logistics business
According to him, we have heard and seen Federal Government interventions through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Bank of Industry (BoI) to private sector businesses to improve on their viability and sustainability but no such programme has been designed for us in the freight forwarding and logistics sector of the Nigeria economy.
Aside not getting any form of palliative from government, Nwabunike noted that there is no offer of single digit loan by government tailored towards operators’ needs in procuring trucks, maintaining warehouses, investing in logistics aided technology like tracking devises and fleet of motorcycles for E-commerce transactions in a state of difficult traffic situation as is experienced in Lagos.
He therefore called on the Federal Ministries of Finance, Transport, Trade and Industry, CBN, NCS and others to see stakeholders and logistics professionals as deserving of state support, not only as potential tax payers but because the likely quake or collapse of the logistics sector will adversely affect the country.
The ANLCA national President equally noted that under his watch, the association will open talks with government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to see how logistics sub sector can be integrated into government interventionist financial programmes and support initiatives.