IMPACT OF MARITIME FRAUD ON THE NIGERIAN ECONOMY

Abstract

Fraud generally is a negative phenomenon. Maritime fraud is not in any way different. In every economy, there are negative and positive factors whose interplay determine the viability or otherwise of the economy and to a large extent determine the capital base of the nation and its image in the international community. This study discovered that maritime fraud is a cankerworm which dealt serious blow to the economy of most countries of the world. Huge sums of money have been lost to the activities of fraudsters in the maritime sector. International confidence and credibility in maritime business have been negatively affected by the activities of maritime fraudsters. In Nigeria, the rot is so much that key players in the maritime field comprising government, importers and exporters and other stakeholders who are not among the beneficiaries of these orchestrated vices in the industry daily desire a solution. Various strategies were adopted by the Nigerian government to tackle the problem, the most heralded was the ports concession exercise introduced by government in the year 2000 aimed at achieving efficient and pro-active ports management with the capacity to eradicate all forms of fraud and vices at the Nigerian ports. However, this device came up with its own challenges and left a situation hard to describe as its after-effect oscillated between genuine solutions and the old order. This study concluded that the defective and distasteful as cabotage regime might appear to other stakeholders still have the statutory to assist the maritime development in Nigeria. This study recommended that a maritime business development unit should be established to determine the issues of the availability of Nigeria ship and capacity of the indigenous operators whenever from the public cargo generators, shipping companies or other agencies.