President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside, on his election as the new Chairman of the Association of African Maritime Administrators (AAMA).
Peterside was elected at the end of the Third Annual Conference of the continental organization in Abuja on Friday.
Buhari said Peterside’s unanimous election is not only a personal honour and affirmation of confidence in his ability to lead AAMA.
He also said the new position places Nigeria in a pivotal position to rally other maritime administrations in collaboration with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) towards safer global maritime activities.
President Buhari believed that given NIMASA’s encouraging performance under Dr. Peterside especially in the fight against sea piracy through inter-agency cooperation, he has no doubt that his new position provides him with an even bigger platform to forge ahead in doing the nation proud by meeting the objectives of AAMA.
The President, while wishing the new Chairman of AAMA a successful one-year tenure, expressed confidence that within this period, the Federal Government’s renewed focus on growing the Nigerian economy through increased maritime resources will be further enhanced.
Dakuku’s election was one of the decisions reached at the just concluded third conference of the association with the theme ‘Sustainable Use of Africa’s Oceans and Seas attended by 34 African countries held from April 19 to 21, 2017 in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city.
Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, Mr. Bashir Jamoh, who addressed a media conference shortly after the event, said that the NIMASA – DG would pilot affairs of AAMA for a year as Egypt would host the next conference while South Africa retains the secretariat.
AAMA is a body of 34 African countries including Nigeria.
Peterside, takes over from Mr. Sobantu Tilayi, the acting Chief Executive Officer of South African Maritime and Safety Agency (SAMSA), who has been the acting Chair of the association since 2013.
At a well attended closing session, Tilayi, the outgoing Chairman described Peterside as a committed and dedicated technocrat that will, no doubt, take maritime administration to a higher level.
Many other participants expressed optimism in Peterside’s leadership ability to improve on the fortunes of the continent through concerted maritime collaboration that will attract interest of African states through their various Maritime Administrations (MARADs).
Within the last one year, Peterside has been able to improve on inter agency and inter government cooperation in the fight against piracy resulting to a reduction in incidences of piracy and sea robberies.
