President of the Women’s International Shipping and Trading Association (WISTA) Nigeria, Mrs. Eunice Ezeoke, has advocated for increased women representation in key positions within the maritime industry.
Ezeoke, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Lagos, was reacting to the recent appointments at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) by President Bola Tinubu.
NAN reports that Tinubu, through its Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, on Thursday in Abuja, announced the appointments of new executive directors in NPA and NIMASA. The President said that the appointees would expeditiously and efficiently execute their collective mandate to create the conditions required to significantly raise the contribution of the sector to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.
Ezeoke said that there are many capable women who can hold such positions within the sector. She, however, observed that the appointments had only included one woman in the NPA and none in NIMASA. Ezeoke further highlighted the expectation for consideration of women during board appointments.
“We have many women who are capable of taking such positions in the sector. The appointment in NPA has only one woman and none in NIMASA.
“But we are waiting for the board appointment; we hope that women are put into consideration,” she said.
Ezeoke also urged the government on the appointment of technocrats in the maritime industry to push the industry forward.
“The people that were appointed not too long ago have not gotten a grip on the industry, and they are being changed for new people; this means that we are going back to square one.
“It is very important to make sure that people appointed to occupy these critical positions can take decisions that favor the industry, as the industry’s growth must be a top priority.
“That is where my concern is. I don’t know any of them, but I am only interested in the growth of the industry because I am a critical stakeholder there,” she said.
Also, a shipper, Reverend Jonathan Nicole, said that the industry and the country at large were in a period of change.
Nicole said that he believed that Tinubu had gotten some elements of reports of the individuals appointed.
The former President of the Shippers Association of Lagos State (SALS) said that the president did this to make the two organizations more proactive and become better.
“We are hopeful things will work well,” he said.
