By Godwin Oritse
THE Economic Communities of West African States (ECOWAS) recently carried out an assessment of port facilities in Nigeria with a view to ascertaining the country’s level of compliance to the International Ship and Port Security, ISPS Code.
Confirming the development at the just concluded monthly meeting of the Lagos Maritime Security Zone of the Port Facility Security Officers (PFSO) Forum, Mr. Ignatius Uche, Secretary of the Forum, said that ECOWAS sent a consultant to carry out the assessment on facilities across the region.
Uche also said that the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) were represented at the assessment exercise, adding that the consultant spent more time in Nigeria because it is the biggest country in the region.
Although, Vanguard could not confirm the number of facilities that were visited by the team, industry sources said they visited the Integrated Oil and Gas Company in Ibafo in Apapa.
The PFSO Forum scribe also told Vanguard that the team will go to other countries in the region for the same purpose of ensuring international best practices.
A 2-page questionnaire containing about 30 questions distributed to the various facilities visited had some questions as follows: “What are the greatest security challenges in your facility; Do you have an approved PFSP for your facility; Do you have restricted areas; What do you do if you move from security one to security level two?
Other questions are: “How do you admit visitors into your facility; Do you have alarm system; Who and who participates in your drills; Do your ID Card have expiration date; and how secured is your berthing areas?
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