AREFFN Plans to Train 1,000 New Graduate Each Year

... Takes On CRFFN On ID Cards Renewal

Kathy Kyari

The Association of Registered Freight Forwarders of Nigeria, AREFFN, has confirmed its strategies for raising awareness of the freight forwarding industry in Nigeria through engaging recent graduates from tertiary institutions and educating them on the potentials inherent in the maritime sector in an effort to catch them young.

This was disclosed by the National Secretary of the AREFFN, Francis Obiekezie, during an interview with journalists on Tuesday.

He claims that there are plans to annually train at least 1000 recent graduates from higher institutions in freight forwarding profession, bemoaning the CRFFN's failure to fulfill the statute establishing the council's duties on capacity building for practitioners.

“We are concentrating on young minds who want to make first choice career in freight forwarding and we want to inject at least 1000 graduates into the business.”

“Our members are trained by Redeemers University currently, and we pay for this services which ordinarily should be funded by CRFFN according to the act.”

“We even want to establish a link with NYSC Camp so as to catch them young, because we find out there are lots of cross-border trading going on and these are things you cannot do when you are stark illiterate".

"These businesses were originally dominated by people who are not sufficiently trained and prepared for it so it cannot be a last resort business for people in the future so our aim is to make freight forwarding business a venture to be proud of in the near future”

"Right now, we have done about two batches of different trainings by CRFFN in conjunction with Redeemers University at our Training Hall, we are about to start another batch for Higher National Diploma with freight forwarders".

Obiekezie requested that the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) update the identity cards for registered members, which were last issued in 2012.

He said that the identity cards of the council members need to be renewed before the council board expires in 2024, stressing that failure to do so sends the incorrect message about a government institution operating under the new ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.

The National Secretary noted that the Association and CRFFN have been at odds over the training of practitioners and added that the council has failed to establish capacity, while grieving the fact that members pay for their own training out of their own hard-earned money.

“CRFFN identity card was been issued to members back in 2012 and up until today there is no renewal and this does not show seriousness and commitment about the Council.

“We have been quarrelling with CRFFN on capacity building for members and practitioners. We can only get this benefit when CRFFN stabilizes, he stated.

He pointed out that not much has been accomplished since the CRFFN was founded and emphasized that the council should have been more resolute in confronting the Maritime Police Command's recent patterns of impeding container movement from the ports.

Obiezekie, who appeared displeased with the CRFFNs' uncertain situation, urged the new Minister of Marine and Blue Economy to consult extensively with experts in order to stabilize the Agency.

Speaking further, he voiced his dissatisfaction over the CRFFNs' inability to provide member trainings despite significant funding set aside by the government for that reason.

According to him, members pay between N120,000 and N250,000 for diploma and higher diploma degrees in courses relevant to freight forwarding while noting that CRFFN outsourced member training rather than doing it themselves.