It was written
Heather Ervin
Bador Ferry Terminal. (Credit: Lagos State Media Team)
Roberta Weisbrod, Executive Director of the Worldwide Ferry Safety Association
The regional ferry conference in Lagos in late June was an opportunity to learn about what is happening in Africa's maritime affairs.
In the past few years, the Lagos State government has launched a wide range of well-regulated ferry systems with 729 ferries on more than 30 routes.
Over 83% of the ferries are in the informal sector, open boats with outboard motors, serving as feeders and now serve as low-cost alternatives. The rest is a enclosed container. All ferries are licensed and regulated by the Lagos State Waterways Bureau (Raswa), led by Orwa Damirola “Dami” Emmanuel. All vessels will be checked by dockside security guards for passenger and cargo overload. They also see that all passengers in the informal and formal sector wear life jackets. Ferries are inspected annually and via spot checks. The ferries crossing the waterway are monitored by a command center with night vision capabilities. Violations like night trips are often forced through jet ski patrols.
Built on success
Based on this success, Babajide Sano Olu, governor of Lagos, has just reached the Omieco project (omi is the Yoruba of “water”). With a budget of USD 464 million, there are 78 electric ferries, 140 km of waterway dr and new floating jets that handle tide ranges of 1 meter. Terminals are upgraded to accommodate electrification. Most of the funding comes from European sources along with sources from Lagos State and private sector.
Lagos Ferries could be considered a success, but this involves a commitment to sustainability, not in Nigeria's inland waterways or other parts of Africa. As Dr. Paul Adarikuw, director of the Maritime Agency of West and Central Africa (MOWCA), recently noted, “more than 8,000 lives have been lost in ferry-related incidents within the sub-region over the past decade, and democratic republics of Nigeria, Senegal and the Congo are struggling the most.” The Worldwide Safety Association has kept a record of media coverage of ferry fatalities around the world since 2000, and said most of the accidents in the area over the past decade have been due to unreported vessels.
For this horrifying record, Mowca partnered with Interferry to meet for a third workshop meeting. (A previous workshops organized by Interferry and its Ferry Saf Committee were also found in 2024 at Dar Es Salaam and Marrakech). There were over 220 participants from Nigeria's maritime sector and other African countries. Speakers shared their findings and best practices. Meteorological agency Nimet reported that more weather monitoring is needed due to unprecedented ways and locations over the past decade as marine weather has deteriorated.
Interference experts on the Ferrysafe Committee, led by Oliver Weiss, spoke or moderated. The outstanding feature was the two interfering board member operators who spoke directly to their counterparts. “I shed the same blood as you. I'm the owner operator, like many of you. I know what you're doing,” said Tim Mooney, CEO of Fire Island Ferries and chairman of the Interferry Board. Mary Anne Pastrana, chairman of the Philippines' Archipelago Ferries, was founded 23 years ago when the Philippines had a very poor safety record. This has been greatly improved thanks to the leadership of the archipelago. Mary Anne spoke about maintenance and training challenges. Both operators provided an open door to discuss issues and options for handling them.
The West and Central African Maritime Agency (MOWCA) were key players in the conference. The organization consists of 25 African countries headquartered in Ivory Coast. Dr. Paul Adarikuw, who worked in Africa's international maritime affairs, has a keen understanding and personal ability to grow an organization for maximum effectiveness. He plans to expand membership with Maritime Development Bank to cover all Maritime Africa.
Following the conference held in Lagos on July 1, Interferee CEO Mike Corrigan and Dr. Mouka Dr. Paul Adarikuu said, “The key areas of joint action include information campaigns for policymakers and the public on ferry safety and sustainability. The contract covers training seminars for cooperation for technical staff for Marit staff, for territorial cooperation for territorial staff. Markets including the assessment of needs and infrastructure sustainability are also planned. MOU will promote cooperation between Interferee members and local operators to improve the operation of ferry companies in the West and Central Africa.
Considering all the abilities on both sides of the MOU, achievement is possible. To complement this effort in partnership with Nigerian Naval Architect David Okafor, we will sponsor the following International Maritime Student Design Competition to design designs for ferries in Nigerian Inland Waterway segments, working directly with colleagues from the Nigerian Navy and Maritime Schools to enhance maritime weather monitoring and communication.
