Africa needs support for green shipping transition – NIMASA

As global leaders prepare to converge on Mombasa, Kenya, for the 11th Our Ocean Conference scheduled for June 16 to June 18, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency says stronger collaboration, reliable emissions data, technology transfer, and climate finance will be critical to achieving net-zero emissions in the maritime sector. NIMASA added that developing countries, particularly in Africa, cannot successfully navigate the global transition to cleaner shipping without coordinated international support and strategic partnerships. Speaking in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH, the Director of Marine Environment Management at NIMASA, Dr Oma Ofodile, said Nigeria would use the conference to reinforce the need for an inclusive and equitable approach to maritime decarbonisation. According to her, the future of green shipping will depend not only on environmental commitments but also on the ability of countries to access technology, build capacity, generate reliable emissions data, and mobilise adequate funding. Ofodile said one of the major lessons from Nigeria’s engagement at recent climate conferences was that no country could achieve maritime decarbonisation in isolation. She recalled that at COP28 in Dubai, NIMASA championed the idea of an African coalition to support the implementation of the International Maritime Organisation’s greenhouse gas reduction strategy. The initiative, she explained, was driven by the recognition that African countries face similar challenges in the transition to low-carbon shipping and would benefit from collective action. “We recognised early that collaboration would be essential. No single country can successfully navigate this transition alone. African countries need to work together, share experiences, attract investments, and build common positions on key issues,” she said. The NIMASA official noted that one of the strongest outcomes of those discussions was the growing consensus that reliable emissions data must form the foundation of any meaningful decarbonisation strategy. According to her, Nigeria’s collaboration with University College London to develop a national maritime emissions inventory revealed significant weaknesses in existing data collection systems. She explained that much of the information required to assess emissions levels within the maritime sector was still being collected manually, limiting accuracy and making long-term analysis difficult. “You cannot effectively manage what you cannot measure. Before discussing emission reduction targets or financing mechanisms, we needed to u