The Senate on Tuesday passed the revised Nigerian Port Economic Regulatory Agency (NPERA) Bill during plenary. The passage followed a motion by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, seconded by Minority Leader Abba Moro.
Bill Objectives
The bill seeks to establish the Nigerian Shippers' Council as an independent economic regulator of Nigerian ports. It aims to address operational inefficiencies, reduce arbitrary charges, promote competition, and improve cargo movement from ports to hinterlands and overall maritime services.
Legislative History
The NPERA Bill had previously experienced back-and-forth between the National Assembly and the Presidency for assent. It was transmitted back to legislators for amendment of provisions conflicting with the Nigerian Tax Administration Act (NTAA) 2025. The House of Representatives had effected corrections and sent it to the Senate for concurrence.
At the Committee of the Whole, Bamidele noted that fundamental issues were identified requiring fresh legislative action after critical examination by the Ministry of Justice. A technical committee comprising the Senate, House of Representatives, and legal drafting experts from the Directorate of Legal Services convened to resolve the issues.
Relying on Orders 1(b) and 52(6) of the Senate Standing Orders, lawmakers rescinded their earlier decision on the bill. They recommitted the bill to the Committee of the Whole for careful consideration, amendment, and passage in line with legislative procedures. The bill was subsequently passed clause by clause after exhaustive deliberation.
Port Inefficiencies Report
Meanwhile, a new report by the Sea Empowerment and Research Centre (SEREC) revealed that inefficiencies in transaction processes across multiple agencies have driven dwell times at Nigerian ports to 475 percent, surpassing global averages. These administrative and procedural bottlenecks contribute between 60 and 73 percent of total cargo dwell time.
The report, signed by SEREC Head of Research Dr. Eugene Nweke, stated that the dominant constraint is not physical congestion but delays occurring before cargo movement begins. It aligns with UNCTAD assessments identifying procedural inefficiencies as a major barrier to trade facilitation.
Breaking down cargo dwell time, transactional processes account for about 73 percent, operational handling 20 percent, and storage just five percent. With 15 to 20 approval touchpoints among multi-agencies, the system creates duplication, delays, and rising costs. The report cited the WTO Trade Facilitation framework, which identifies institutional fragmentation as a direct inhibitor of efficiency.
SEREC highlighted a significant competitiveness gap: average cargo dwell time at Lagos ports ranges between eight and 16 days, compared to a global benchmark of three to five days. Lome port in Togo records seven to 10 days, and Tema port in Ghana records seven to 10 days. Nigerian ports' dwell times of up to 475 percent underscore structural and systemic inefficiency.
