Minister of State for Transportation, Prince Ademola Adegoroye, has reaffirmed the Federal Government’s resolve to entrench effective and efficient freight forwarding systems in the country.
Adegoroye said this in a statement by his Director of Press and Public Relations, Mr. Henshaw Ogubike, on Sunday in Abuja.
The minister stated this at the commissioning of the Kano Zonal Office of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) in Kano.
Adegoroye said the construction and commissioning of the CRFFN’s office were in furtherance of the Federal Government’s vision and determination to establish a smooth operating freight forwarding system in the country.
He said it was also aimed at expanding the participation of littoral and non-littoral states in maritime and general logistics.
“The need to promote professionalism, entrench global best practices and develop the capacity of freight forwarding practitioners cannot be over-emphasized.
”Hence the policy of having zonal offices in the six geopolitical zones of the country”, Adegoroye said.
The minister enumerated the anticipated benefits and impact of the CRFFN’s zonal office, expressing optimism that the new office would further encourage the safe, timely, sustainable, and environmentally friendly movement of cargo, using the road and rail modes.
According to the minister, the office will aid revenue generation for the government through its collection of Practitioner’s Operating fees (POF).
“It will also help in expanding the list of certified freight forwarding professionals whose impact will be felt all over the country and beyond,” he added.
Adegoroye solicited the cooperation and support of the Kano State Government and other states in the zone for the CRFFN in all areas as may be required from time to time.
Also at the occasion, the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, said it was imperative to establish CRFFN’s Zonal offices across the country.
According to her, the offices will ensure effective and efficient regulation and promotion of freight forwarding in the nation.
The Registrar of CRFFN, Mr. Sam Nwakohu said the construction of the Kano Zonal Office was informed by the need to bring the Council closer to the grassroots.
Nwakohu said the CRFFN would not renege on its mandate of ensuring professionalism, promoting freight logistics efficiency, and improving Nigeria’s ranking on the logistics performance index.
Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano, represented by the Special Adviser on State Affairs, Murtala Dandawaki, expressed the readiness of the state government to support the CRFFN. He urged the council to take advantage of the state’s vast human and material resources.
The media reports that Freight forwarding is the coordination and shipment of goods from one place to another through single or multiple carriers such as air, marine, rail, or highway.
The CRFFN was established by the CRFFN Act No. 16, 2007 with the responsibility to, amongst others, regulate and control the practice of freight forwarding in Nigeria.
It also aims at promoting the highest standards of competence, practice, and conduct among members of the profession.
The CRFFN’s Kano zonal office is to oversee the council’s affairs in all 19 Northern States and ensure a strong presence of the Council in that region.
