Maritime sector agents, including members of the African Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria and the Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents, Western Zone, on Monday shut down operations at the Apapa office of the Mediterranean Shipping Company to protest a recent increase in shipping charges.
The agents warned that the hike would worsen inflation in an already fragile economy.
It was gathered that the protesters turned out in large numbers, insisting that MSC’s Apapa office remain shut from 6 a.m. on Tuesday until the company reverses the new charges.
They argued that the rising accumulation of port-related charges is steadily driving up import costs, with the impact ultimately passed on to consumers.
This follows a report on Monday that licensed customs agents were considering picketing the shipping company over the increased freight rates, unless there is a last-minute reversal, according to The Punch.
Commenting, the National President of the African Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria, Mr. Frank Ogunojemite, attributed the increase to the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, accusing it of failing to regulate the sector.
He warned that the association may consider shutting down the NSC office if the hike is not addressed.
“Yes, it was shut down. Can’t you see how they are increasing everything? We have sent a letter to the presidency, and we suspect a compromise at the Nigerian Shippers’ Council. We are going to meet on Tuesday, and after that, we may likely shut down the NSC if the issue is not resolved. There is inflation everywhere, and the NSC, which is supposed to regulate all this, is not doing what it is supposed to do. Everything is increasing; we will protest it,” Ogunojemite stated.
A maritime research group under the Sea Empowerment Research Centre stressed that Nigeria’s maritime and port industry is a key driver of trade, revenue, and economic stability.
The group noted that all actions, responses, and regulatory decisions in the sector should be guided by professionalism, legality, economic insight, and institutional responsibility.
In a position paper on the freight increase, signed on Monday by SEREC’s Head of Research, Mr. Eugene Nweke, the centre said that the recent industrial actions over rising shipping line charges have once again highlighted persistent structural imbalances in the port cost framework.
“While stakeholder concerns regarding arbitrary and disproportionate tariff increases are legitimate and well-founded, the methods adopted in prosecuting such grievances must align with modern industrial relations standards and international best practices. The Nigerian maritime industry does not suffer from a lack of grievances; it suffers from a deficit of effective regulation and structured engagement,” Nweke stated.
Nweke, a former President of NAGAFF, stated that while industrial advocacy is a legitimate tool, “how we protest is as important as why we protest.
A professional industry must reject street-style shutdowns and instead adopt intelligent pressure, regulatory accountability, and institutional reform. Sustainable solutions are found not in confrontation, but through credible regulation, responsible leadership, and collective discipline.”
Additionally, the Chairman of the Ports & Terminal Multiservice Chapter of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders,
Mr. Thomas Alor, also opposed the shipping company’s freight increase.
“We are not happy with the increase. The shipping company said they want to have a stakeholders’ meeting, but you can’t hold such a meeting when the stakeholders are on holiday. You fixed a stakeholders’ meeting on the 24th of December, when almost everybody has travelled. They want to have their way; that was why they fixed it for that day. We are not in support of that. They should tell us why the increase, call a stakeholders’ meeting to tell us why the increase,” Alor said.
