ANLCA@72: From Founders’ Dream to Indispensable Pillar of Nigeria’s Port Economy

BY EGUONO ODJEGBA

Seventy-two years is a long time in the life of any organisation. In an industry as volatile, policy-driven and intensely competitive as the Nigerian maritime sector, surviving for more than seven decades is even more remarkable.

For ANLCA, therefore, the 72nd anniversary is more than an occasion for ceremonies, speeches, awards and social engagements. It is an opportunity to pause and examine the institution itself: where it came from, what it was established to achieve, what it has contributed to Nigeria’s port economy and, perhaps most importantly, what it must do to preserve its future.

Established in 1954 as the umbrella body and foremost voice of licensed customs agents operating in Nigeria, ANLCA emerged at a time when the country’s maritime and customs environment was evolving rapidly.

The men who conceived the association could hardly have predicted the scale, complexity and technological sophistication that would eventually define the Nigerian port system.

But they understood one fundamental reality: individual customs agents, operating separately, would struggle to effectively defend their professional interests, engage government and influence policies affecting their businesses.

The answer was collective organisation. Without any gainsaying, that founding principle remains relevant today. Over seven decades later, the Nigerian port environment has become vastly more complex. Customs administration has moved from largely manual processes to increasingly digital systems. Port infrastructure has expanded. Terminal concessions have altered the operational landscape. International trade rules have become more sophisticated.

That is not all, compliance requirements have multiplied, while revenue, security, trade facilitation and economic competitiveness have become inseparable elements of port administration.

At the centre of much of this activity remains the licensed customs agent. The agent is one of the important links between the importer and exporter on one hand and government agencies, shipping lines, terminal operators, ports and other service providers on the other.

This places ANLCA in a unique position. It is not simply another professional association seeking recognition. Its members operate directly within the machinery through which international trade enters and leaves Nigeria.

Consequently, when ANLCA speaks responsibly on customs procedures, port charges, cargo clearance, trade facilitation, operational bottlenecks and policies affecting importers and exporters, government and industry cannot afford to treat such interventions with indifference.

This explains why the association’s 72nd anniversary should interest more than ANLCA members. It should interest the Nigeria Customs Service, interest the Nigerian Ports Authority, interest the Nigerian Shippers’ Council already in transition to the Nigerian ports economic regulatory Agency (NPERA).

It should also indeed, interest terminal operators and shipping companies, and should interest freight forwarding organisations, importers, exporters, manufacturers, transport operators, financial institutions and every stakeholder whose business depends on the efficiency of Nigeria’s ports.

An efficient port system requires collaboration. Government needs compliant and professionally organised operators. Operators need predictable policies, efficient agencies and functional infrastructure. The private sector needs a regulatory environment that encourages investment and reduces uncertainty.

ANLCA sits squarely within that ecosystem, thus, its relevance extends beyond mere history or historical interludes. The association has had its difficult seasons. Like many large organisations, it has experienced disagreements, leadership contests, internal tensions and periods when personal interests appeared to threaten institutional cohesion.

Those experiences should not be denied nor be allowed to define ANLCA permanently. Indeed, perhaps the most significant message coming out of the 72nd anniversary is that the association has survived its difficult years and is now confronting the future with a renewed emphasis on peace, internal democracy and institutional stability.

That is worth celebrating. Peace is not weakness. Reconciliation is not surrender. And unity does not require everyone to agree on every issue. What matters is the ability to disagree without destroying the institution that binds everyone together. That is where ANLCA’s present leadership and its membership face perhaps their greatest responsibility.

Those who remain aggrieved by past developments have legitimate emotions and concerns that may not be wished away, easily. But an organisation cannot continually mortgage its future to the disputes of its past. The appropriate response should always be genuine reconciliation.

Where there are grievances, let them be heard. Where wrongs can be corrected, let them be corrected. Where apologies are necessary, let them be offered. And where members have legitimate concerns about the direction of the association, let those concerns be addressed through the structures of the organization, while avoiding graveyard, litigation induced settlements as much as possible.

But once the issues have been fairly addressed, ANLCA must move forward. The association’s golden years will not return merely because they are remembered. They will return when members rediscover the discipline, fraternity, professionalism and collective purpose that made the organisation formidable in the first place.

That was the position of Prince Segun Oduntan during Monday’s press briefing that sets out the format of the anniversary celebration. That was the position past leaders including Senator Sanni Kamba, Chief Peter Okocha, Sir Ernest Elochukwu, Prince Olayiwola Shittu, Pa James Idornigie, Late Aare Shittu, current National President, Mr. Emenike Nwokeoji and a number of other well meaning members contributing from behind the curtain,  consistently pushed. That is the real significance of ANLCA’s 72 years; a proud historical sanction all members should identify with.

It is not simply that ANLCA has grown old. It is that the association has remained relevant through changing administrations, changing customs regimes, changing port structures and changing generations of freight professionals.

The challenge now is to ensure that the next chapter is bigger than the previous ones. ANLCA must continue to earn its position as the foremost voice of licensed customs agents through professionalism, credible advocacy, constructive engagement and responsible leadership.

Its relationship with government agencies must equally mature from episodic engagement to sustained institutional partnership. The Nigeria Customs Service, for instance, needs an ANLCA that can help promote compliance and trade facilitation while constructively drawing attention to genuine operational difficulties.

The Nigerian Ports Authority and terminal operators need an organised community of customs agents capable of contributing to conversations on port efficiency and infrastructure. Shipping companies need professional agents who understand the increasingly complex requirements of international shipping.

And government needs industry associations that can distinguish between legitimate advocacy and obstruction. This is why the 72nd anniversary deserves to be seen as an industry event.

ANLCA’s success is connected to the success of the Nigerian port system. If the association becomes stronger, more united and more professional, the industry benefits. Conversely, if it becomes divided and consumed by internal conflict, the consequences will extend beyond its membership.

Therefore, as the association prepares to celebrate, the most appropriate tribute to its founders is not merely to remember them, it is to preserve the institution they created. Seventy-two years after 1954, the responsibility belongs to the present generation.

The past has given ANLCA its identity. The present must give it stability, while the future must give it greatness.