The latest report by the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network (MACN) has revealed that corruption in the nation’s maritime industry added about 15 per cent to the cost of importing food and bulk products into the country.

The international anti-maritime corruption agency in its latest report for 2023 released at the weekend said corruption also added more than $178,000 to the cost of a shipment of petrol.

Similarly, it adds $147,000 per shipment of grain and other food items, which represents about 1-2 per cent to the retail prices paid by customers for grain and petrol.

The report details the results of a study developed by the socio-economic impact assessment firm QBIS, which applies a dollar value to direct and indirect costs of maritime corruption across the private sector, government, and society in Nigeria.

“Government officials extracting bribes for routine tasks, or ‘coercive’ corruption, cause economic damage through ship delays and higher trade costs, as well as endangering the wellbeing of seafarers and exposing them and others to the risk of criminal prosecution.

“In its business-as-usual scenario, where all bribery requests are met without resistance, the study found corruption adds $147,000 per import shipment of grain and more than $187,000 per shipment of petrol. Food and petrol account for around a third of Nigeria’s imports.

“With 63 per cent of Nigerians or 133 million people classified as multi-dimensionally poor, most Nigerian families do not have a budget surplus.

“Increased import costs due to corruption are therefore likely to reduce their household demand and make essential goods less affordable to the average Nigerian family,” the report said.

The Agency stressed that the business-as-usual scenario adds 1-2 per cent to retail prices for grain and petrol.

MACN in its reports disclosed that maritime corruption results in an annual reduction in GDP of $204 million, an annual reduction in revenue collected by Customs by $42 million and 235,000 fewer Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) jobs due to fewer sales and economic activity.

According to MACN, a zero-tolerance approach to bribery during vessel clearance cuts the damages caused by corruption by around 62 per cent, the study found.

The report said by slashing around $114,000 per shipment in corruption costs, the bill for marine corruption falls by around $100 million per year, and its economic impact drops by $230 million.

“By ‘Saying No’ to maritime corruption, GDP increases by about $130 million annually, Customs revenue from tariffs increases by $28 million annually, and more than 147,000 FTE jobs are created due to more sales and economic activity across the supply chain in Nigeria,” said the report.

MACN said the combined efforts of industry and government have reduced corruption in Nigeria, adding that over 90 per cent of corruption incidents are now resolved within 24 hours.

The report said, that a single case took between seven and 10 days before 2019 while the average resolution time is now one to eight hours.

“Impressively, 98 per cent of escalated incidents have been successfully resolved, and the remaining 2 per cent have been escalated to authorities to clarify protocols,” MACN said.

(Nigerian Tribune)

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