NCS Board confirms appointment of 2ACGs, approves promotion of 2209 Senior Officers

....as DC Hussein K Ejibunu of FOU among 67 DCs promoted to Customs Comptroller 

ZAINAB JUNAID 

In recognition of the exceptional performance of Officers and Men of the Nigeria Customs Service(NCS) in the 2023 promotion examination, NCS Board during its 58th regular meeting held on Tuesday, 19 December 2023, at the Nigeria Customs Service Headquarters, chaired by the Honorable Minister of Finance, Mr. Wale Edun, has confirmed the appointment of two (2) Assistant Comptrollers General and the promotion of Two Thousand Two Hundred and Nine (2209) Senior Officers. 

National Public Relations Officer of the Service, Chief Supretendent of Customs (CSC) Abdullahi Maiwada, disclosed this on Friday December 22, 2023, in a statement revealing that the appointed officers confirmed as substantive members of the NCS Management Team are ACG Florence Nano Ogar-Modey and ACG Queen Ogubudu.

The comprehensive promotion list, according to the statement encompasses both General Duty (GD) and Support Staff (SS) personnel who demonstrated outstanding performance in the 2023 promotion exercise. The breakdown of promoted officers is as follows: Inspector of Customs (IC) to Assistant Superintendent of Customs II (ASC II) - 348, ASC II to ASC I - 321, ASC I to Deputy Superintendent of Customs (DSC) - 355, DSC to Superintendent of Customs (SC) - 207, SC to Chief Superintendent of Customs (CSC) - 500, CSC to Assistant Comptroller (AC) - 333, AC to Deputy Comptroller (DC) - 78, and DC to Customs Comptroller (CC) - 67.

"The board approved special promotions for fourteen officers in recognition of their exceptional performance in various assigned responsibilities.

"Among the newly promoted Comptrollers are TM Daniyan, F Fajana, N Isyaku, MV Umana, AC Nwobi, F Abdulqadir, HK Ejibunu, FM Ojiofor, IN Aliyu, MD Malah, EO Oshoba, JK Oladeji, E Luka, AP Daruaku, FM Ojeifor, IN Nwokorie, EJ Harrison and others," the statement revealed.

While congratulating the newly promoted Officers and Men of the Service, Comptroller-General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR urged them to redouble their efforts in fulfilling the critical roles of revenue generation, trade facilitation, and suppression of smuggling, adding "this will enhance the NCS's pivotal role in bolstering Nigeria's socio-economic well-being."

He also extended warm wishes for joyous Christmas and New Year celebrations and expressed gratitude to the Honorable Minister of Finance for facilitating the timely conclusion of the 2023 promotion cycle.

The CGC further acknowledged the historical success, pledging to maintain the momentum in future exercises. 

"These strategic advancements are in harmony with his vision to fortify leadership, recognize merit, and inspire personnel for sustained success," he said.

NIMASA Partners NSML to train 150 NSDP Cadets

  ....as 50 cadets were inducted for CoC training, examinations.

ZAINAB JUNAID 

"The training aimed at addressing the dearth of Nigerian seafarers on ocean going vessels and the need to meet indigenous manning requirements in Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage)."

In a bid to facilitate Certificate of Competency(CoC) examinations for beneficiaries of the Nigerian Seafarers Development Program (NSDP), the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has signed a training agreement with the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas, NLNG Ship Management Limited, NSML

The NSDP is a sponsored intervention programme being implemented by NIMASA to grow capacity of young Nigerians to be certified as seafarers with global recognition and acceptance, thus bridging the gap in the dearth of seafarers globally; while the CoC examination is the final stage of the NSDP training, culminating in the acquisition of the CoC license which potentially opens the doors of global employment opportunities for the cadets.

Speaking at an induction ceremony by NSML for 50 of NIMASA’s Romanian trained NSDP beneficiaries , the NIMASA Director General, Dr Bashir Jamoh OFR, highlighted the success of the collaboration between both parties in fostering the development of Nigerian seafarers.

Jamoh who was represented by the Agency’s Director Special Duties, Isichei Osamgbi, expressed appreciation to NSML for their leadership and vision in partnering the Agency to support the development of seafarers and promotion of our local content onboard their vessels.

To him, “It is worthy of note that a good number of NSDP Officers trained onboard NSML vessels are now employed by the company. Today, we are proud to announce that 150 Romanian-trained NSDP cadets have concluded their mandatory onboard sea training and are ready to proceed for the Certificate of Competency (CoC) training and examinations. The signing of this Training Agreement between both parties resulting in the commencement of CoC for the first batch of Romanian trained cadets, will go a long way in ensuring all backlogs of cadets awaiting CoCs are cleared”. 

He urged other organizations in the industry to take a cue from NSML and give opportunities to aspiring Nigerian seafarers to acquire knowledge and gain experiences to excel in the field.

Also speaking at the event, the Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, charged the lucky Cadets to be worthy ambassadors of Nigeria.

Dr. Ajani who was also represented by Mrs. Ekanem Saila, a Deputy Director from the Ministry emphasized that the collaboration between NIMASA and NSML was a welcome development likewise the outcome of discussions which have been on for some time.

On his part, the Managing Director/CEO of NSML, Abdulkadir Ahmed, said the organisation is sponsoring 50 of the cadets to the South Shield Marine School in the UK for a 12 month programme to get their certificates of competency required to trade on vessels globally.

R-L: Deputy Director, Maritime Labour Services, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Aliyu Lawan; Ag. Head Maritime Labour Services, NIMASA, Yetunde Collins; Director, Special Duties,NIMASA, Isichei Osamgbi; Deputy Director Cabotage & Shipping Development, Federal Ministry of Marine & Blue Economy, Mrs Ekanem Selia, and Managing Director/CEO NLNG Ship Management Limited, NSML, Abdulkadir Ahmed during the Induction Ceremony by NSML for 50 of NIMASA's Romanian trained NSDP beneficiaries in Lagos.

He said this is aimed at addressing the dearth of Nigerian seafarers on ocean going vessels and the need to meet indigenous manning requirements in Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage).

He stated that the training programme in the UK is the gold standard in maritime training, noting that with the certificate of competencies, the cadets will become qualified seafarers and work on any vessel globally.

“So our support here is really in coordinating and ensuring we actually support these cadets back to back because the goal is to ensure they come out with good Certificates of Competency and to ensure they have a career in the global shipping marine sector,” he stated.

Ahmed also noted that, with the emerging transition in the shipping and maritime industry, such as in energy and decarbonisation, which requires bringing in new technologies, it is important that seafarers continue to upgrade their skill sets and train on new technologies to be abreast of new developments.