The country’s foreign exchange crisis, hike in freight rate, and economic downturn have led to a 70 per cent drop in activities at bonded terminals.
This was disclosed by the General Secretary of the Association of Bonded Terminal Operators of Nigeria, Haruna Omolajomo, according to The Punch.
Omolajomo, who doubles also as the chief executive officer of Harsecom Logistics Limited noted the freight rate had increased from $1,500 to almost $6,000, adding that activities were not up to 20 per cent.
He said “Because of the forex crisis, importation and activities have dropped drastically. Even the freight rate has also increased. Before now, freight used to be $1,500 but it has gone up to about $6,000 and when you now come to Nigeria, the exchange rate for cargo clearance has gone up. A lot of people do not want to go into importation now.”
“The drop in operation can’t be qualified, but I can tell you that no bonded terminal operates above 20 per cent. Because of this economic crutch and the forex, operations at the bonded terminal have dropped by 65-70 per cent,” he stated
He underlined that the decline in freight rates is the result of the expense of clearing containers, the economic downturn, and other factors.
Omolajomo called on the government to tackle some of those challenges.
“The government should look at what to do to address these challenges. The government needs to stabilise the naira and they should also try as much as possible to encourage export. Because if we have more exports, it will generate more money for the government. The government should also look at the issue of multiple taxation; it is killing,” Haruna opined.
