Impact of Technology on Maritime Activities and its Implications

Impact of Technology on Maritime Activities and its Implications by Esther Samuel Umoekam

INTRODUCTION

With the impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on major activities around the world, particularly in Trade, there is no doubt that in the 21st century, the advancement of technology has indeed been a major disruptor of activities in most industries of the economy and the Maritime Sector is not excluded. Recently, the Maritime industry has witnessed the deployment of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (“MASS”), the exponential growth of the usage of the E-Bill of Lading and the effective use of technology in the advancement of Maritime Security as evidenced by the Deep Blue Project and the likes. With the global trend towards digitization, embracing the technological innovations for the improvement of trade efficiency is a no brainer.

This need to change the old ways of doing things is not one without implications. These recent technological innovations shall be considered in the succeeding paragraphs of this article.

A. AUTONOMOUS SHIPPING

Autonomous Shipping is the use of self-piloting vessels to perform shipping operations. They are in most cases fully operated with the use of technology or unmanned vessels and their usage is largely associated with safety and security challenges; this however, does not eliminate the human element as this is an important factor for consideration. The benefits of Autonomous Shipping include cost savings as there are little or no crew onboard and reduction in loss of lives at sea or harm to humans. These benefits have prompted the governments of some countries to look into the concept of ship automation with nations such as Finland, Japan, USA and Singapore, conducting research and trials. Even in Norway, there is an established body called the Norwegian Forum for Autonomous Ships (NFAs) made up of persons and organizations interested in the subject of Autonomous Ships and one of their many objectives is to contribute to the development of and use of autonomous ships in Europe.

As beneficial as the concept of Autonomous Shipping may be, so many questions arise from this innovation viz: How is liability allocated in a situation where two autonomous ships collide? Where the ship breaks down at sea, what method is deployed to ensure it is fixed? How will Autonomous Shipping affect the future of workforce? These questions are yet to have answers owing to the lack of regulations governing the use of Autonomous Ships.

To ensure that there is a balance of the benefits derived from this new and advancing concept against safety and security concerns, the impact on the environment and on international trade, the potential costs to the maritime/shipping industry, and finally their impact on personnel (both on board and ashore); the International Maritime Organization (“IMO”) has initiated a work plan for the development of instruments for Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (“MASS”). The IMO envisages/predicts that the MASS Code will come into force on 01 January 2028.
Although it is predicted that autonomous ships will be used for short voyages, as the global maritime industry momentum focuses on digitization and technological innovations, there is a dire need to develop legal frameworks for proper regulation and also to ensure there is adequate training for the maritime workforce, particularly sea farers as there is obviously a need to upskill in order to meet up with the attendant disruptive nature of Autonomous Shipping.

B. E-BILL OF LADING

A Bill of Lading is a document acknowledging the receipt of goods by a carrier or by the shipper’s agent and the contract for the transportation of those goods . It serves as a receipt of shipment, evidence of carriage contract, negotiable instrument and document of title.

Leveraging on technology, there has been a recent evolution and increased usage of Electronic Bills of Lading (“E-Bill of Lading”) and a general digitization of trade documents. Some of the advantages of the E-Bill of Lading over the Traditional Paper Bill of Lading are tabulated below:

A table that compares the E-Bill of Lading with the Paper Bill of Lading.
Esther Samuel Umoekam

It is trite that only parties to a Bill of Lading are bound by the terms of the Bills and ipso facto can sue and be sued in respect of same . This, by parity of reasoning or extension means that for a person to sue in respect of a Bill of Lading, it must be a recognizable Bill of Lading. Owing to the fact that the functionality and legal implications of most trade documents depend on their ability to be possessed for purposes of lien, one question that begs for answer is, can an Electronic Bill of Lading, being an intangible property be capable of possession? Although there are decisions of Superior Court which answer this question in the negative, the Writer aligns with the decision of the District Judge whose decision formed the basis of the Appeal in Your Response Limited v. Datateam Business Media Limited where a very important issue was raised and it was “whether it is possible to exercise a common law possessory lien over an electronic database”. The District Court while acknowledging the need to keep abreast with technological development and advancement, rejected the argument that it is not possible to exercise a lien over intangible property. The Court held thus:

“It seems to me in the present case that a lien can apply to the electronic data which was in the possession of the Claimant. It would not be appropriate for the law to ignore the development in the real world of record keeping moving from hard copy records into electronic media. The decision which I have to reach today is of limited purview and no doubt this topic may arise again in other cases in other contexts. But for the purpose of the particular decision which I have to reach in this case. I do not accept the submissions by Counsel for the Defendant that a lien cannot exist over the electronic data which was in the Claimant’s possession in just the same way as it could exist over the hard copy records in the Claimant’s possession.”
Sadly, the decision of the District Court was not supported by the Court of Appeal but it is the Writer’s firm position that with the innovations in technology, the problem of control and possession has been resolved. The UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (“MLETR”) adopted by the General Assembly on 07 December 2017, clearly recognizes the use of electronic trade documents for improved efficiency in commercial activities. As at date, only 7 States have adopted the MLETR as part of their domestic Legislations and these States include; Bahrain, Belize, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Singapore and Abu Dhabi Global Market located in the United Arab Emirates .

Based on the UNCITRAL MLETR, in a bid to reform the law in the United Kingdom to allow for trade documents in electronic form, the Law Commission submitted a Report to Parliament on Electronic Trade Documents, and in its Report, it recommended certain criteria which must be met for a document to qualify as an electronic trade document. These criteria are as follows:

• The document must be capable of Possession;
• Fully divestible upon transfer;
• Capable of exclusive control;
• Requirement as to the integrity to establish authenticity;
• The document must contain the same information as would be required to be contained in the paper equivalent;
• The electronic trade document system must be reliable; and
• Identification of persons who exercise control of a document in electronic form.

With modern trends and evolving technology and as can be seen from the increasing number of Countries adopting the use of Electronic Trade Documents, it is safe to argue that the E-Bill of Lading can be treated in the same way as the traditional paper Bill of Lading.

In Nigeria, the closest legislation that recognizes the use of Electronic Documents is the Evidence Act, 2011. By virtue of Section 84(1) of the Evidence Act, electronic documents can be admissible in evidence upon satisfaction of the conditions contained in subsection (2) of the same section. Although it may seem as if the distinction between a mere computer-generated document and a legally binding E-Bill of Lading may be advanced to argue that the Evidence Act is being stretched beyond its limits, one can safely conclude, based on the provisions of the Evidence Act, that an E-Bill of Lading can be admitted in evidence under Nigerian Law.

Technology Platforms for E-Bills of Lading

In recent times, software platforms have been developed to meet the rising demands for electronic bills of lading and one of such platforms is Wave BL. The Wave BL Platform (an E-Bill of Lading and Trade Document Software) which has been used by major shipping companies to create and execute electronic bills of lading, leverages on blockchain technology for its effectiveness. Wave BL has a decentralized solution that makes it possible to verify title and possession, allows for transfer of e-bills of lading from one person to another with zero exposure to third parties. The Wave BL platform also has byelaws which are required to be accepted by users who sign up to use the platform. These byelaws are created to mirror the English Carriage of Goods by Sea Act of 1992 which in effect retains the required terms as stipulated under the relevant law.

The only challenge that may arise from these varying software platforms, is the problem of uniformity.

Finally, when it comes to trade or commercial transactions, particularly shipping, financial institutions play a major role in terms of issuance of letters of credit or using the e-bill of lading as a negotiable instrument. There is therefore a need to onboard the banks and acquaint them with the new development in this regard.

C. MARITIME SECURITY

Maritime Security is concerned with the prevention of intentional damage through sabotage, subversion, or terrorism and prompt mitigation of incidences within the maritime domain . It involves the continuous surveillance and reconnaissance of a nation’s maritime domain with a view to prompt interdictions when infringements occur to the nation’s regulations. For this purpose, surveillance technologies have been deployed to facilitate timely and accurate decisions to neutralize threats. The Deep Blue Project was established by Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) inter alia, for the prevention of illegal activities in the Nigerian Exclusive Economic Zone and enhancement of the safety of lives at sea. Also, the NAF ATR 42 Patrol Aircrafts, Falcon Eye Project, Maritime Operational Intelligence System (MOIS) are some of the other technological systems deployed for the purpose of maritime security.

This has helped in promoting and securing the international maritime domain as well as protect maritime resources from all criminal acts.

Conclusion

Safety, ease of doing business, cost savings, speed and support for a greener economy are some of the many benefits that the effectual use of technology in the Maritime industry can promote. It is recommended that countries of the world key into this development and either adopt and domesticate the relevant international laws and or enact legislations to cover any lapse that may arise therefrom so as to enable the smooth running of the Maritime Sector in their jurisdictions.

With the world gravitating towards the use of technology, it is left for individuals and institutions to embrace modern technology and rethink their business processes in a bid to adapt and compete with global the market.

The Maritime Industry is taking laudable steps in ensuring that it has a competitive advantage by embracing the use of technology and it is imperative that the Maritime Workforce upskill to meet up with the challenges that this disruption may pose.


For further information, please contact:

Esther Samuel Umoekam
Energy, Constitutional and Transport Law Section
Paul Usoro & Co.
+234 (0) 8028242292
esther.samuel@paulusoro.com

Nigerian Ships for Nigerian Waters: The Protectionist Policy of the Cabotage Act vis-à-vis the Liberalism of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA)

NIGERIAN SHIPS FOR NIGERIAN WATERS: THE PROTECTIONIST POLICY OF THE CABOTAGE ACT VIS-A-VIS THE LIBERALISM OF THE AFRICAN CONTINENTAL FREE TRADE AGREEMENT (“AfCFTA”) – Gideon Edem[1]

INTRODUCTION

The potential of our Maritime sector is becoming a recurring revelation and needs no projection into the future but rather an immediate investment for immediate returns. Across the world, crude oil is increasingly being relegated and pressure is increasingly moving to cleaner alternatives, and renewables. The maritime sector offers a wide range of new business opportunities from clean energy to new modes of transportation, logistics and agriculture across almost all other sectors.

However, despite the potentials of this sector for the national economy and sovereignty, our maritime assets were not optimally harnessed as the sector was dominated by foreign companies, with significantly limited participation by domestic companies.

This has been attributed to the lack of financial and technical capacities of domestic companies, inadequate infrastructure, and ineffective implementation of local content policies, among other factors, which perpetuated the state of underdevelopment of local operators.

The Chairman, Lagos Deep Offshore Logistic (LADOL), Mr Ladi Jadesimi, at the 2019 Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) Annual Stakeholders Appreciation Night, had noted that “The maritime industry holds the key to the sustainable economic development of Nigeria and whatever we do must be underpinned with strong local content – in today’s world that starts with Nigerians owning, engineering and building the ships we use.”[2]

It must have been for this reason that the Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act, 2003 was enacted to address the limited participation of domestic companies and enhance their participation in the maritime sector. The main objective of the Act is to give first priority to Nigerian shipping companies in domestic coastal trade and develop indigenous tonnage.

The Cabotage Act clearly gave priority to indigenous ships and strictly reserves the Nigerian waters for Nigerian ships.

While protectionism has been the Nigerian maritime dream, concerns broke out across Africa on the Pan African liberalism drive and this led to the ambitious trade pact to form the world’s largest free trade area by creating a single market for goods and services of almost 1.3bn people across Africa in order to deepen the economic integration of Africa; The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement. This agreement and the impact therefrom could have a combined gross domestic product of around $3.4 trillion, but achieving its full potential depends on significant policy reforms and trade facilitation measures across African signatory nations.[3]

On the basis of Nigeria being a signatory to this trade pact, this article attempts to highlight the startling divergence (if any) between the Cabotage Act and the African Continental Free Trade Agreement with respect to the Nigerian waters and maritime assets.

TRADE PROTECTIONISM OF THE CABOTAGE ACT

It is no gainsaying that the Cabotage Act was enacted for trade protectionism. Trade protectionism is a policy that protects domestic industries from unfair foreign competition using tools such as tariffs, subsidies, quotas, and currency manipulation.

According to Mrs. Mfon Usoro in a paper presented at the International Maritime seminar for Judges in 2018,[4] the Cabotage Act was enacted in 2003 to inter alia promote the development of indigenous tonnage, and restrict the use of foreign vessels in cabotage. It defines cabotage to include the carriage of goods by vessel or any other mode of transport from one place in Nigeria or above Nigerian waters to any other place in Nigeria or above Nigerian waters.

Indeed, for a vessel to engage in cabotage on the inland waterways, it must be wholly owned and manned by Nigerian citizens; and must be built and registered in Nigeria.[5] To further maintain its strict protectionist disposition and to aid enforcement, the Act criminalises non-compliance with its provisions.

The only exceptions for participation of foreign vessel in the act[6] are instances where the vessel is engaged in a salvage operation,[7] engaged with the approval of the minister or any related government agency in activities of marine pollution emergency or any threatened risk,[8] engaged in any ocean research activity commissioned by the department of fisheries,[9] and operated or sponsored by a foreign government that has sought and received the consent of the Minister of Foreign affairs to conduct Marine Scientific Research[10]. A salvage operation in this section must be determined by the minister to be beyond the capacity of Nigerian owned and operated salvage vessels and companies.

While the Cabotage Act leaves some allowances for waivers[11] and licenses to foreign vessel,[12] the circumstances of these allowances are only activated if there are no domestic options.

The foundational issue of ship registration is also protected as a vessel shall not be registered or used in the domestic trade unless the minister is satisfied that[13]

(a) the vessel is wholly and beneficially owned by Nigerian citizens or by a company wholly and beneficially owned by Nigerian citizens and a vessel or company is wholly and beneficially owned by Nigerian citizens where all the shares in the vessel and the company are held by Nigerian citizens free from any trust or obligation in favour of any person not a citizen of Nigeria;

(b) the vessel is on bareboat charter to Nigerian citizens and is under the full control and management of Nigerian citizens or a company wholly and beneficially owned by Nigerians;

(c) the vessel is owned by a company registered in Nigeria and the percentage of shares in the company owned by Nigerian citizens is not less than 60 per centum;

(d) any foreign vessel is licensed in compliance the Cabotage Act;

(e) the vessel is exclusively manned by officers and crew of Nigerian citizenship except with the minister’s waiver and

(f) the vessel possesses all certificates and documents in compliance with international and regional maritime conventions to which Nigeria is a party including all safety and pollution requirements imposed by a Nigerian law and any international convention in force.

From the foregoing, it is a requirement for registration for a vessel intending to participate in the domestic trade to be built by a company owned by Nigerian citizens or with the controlling interest vested in Nigerian citizens.[14]

The law determines instances where the controlling interest shall not be deemed to be vested in Nigerian Citizens, thus-

(i) if the title to a majority of the shares thereof or 60 per centum are not held by such citizens free from any trust or fiduciary obligation in favour of any person not a citizen of Nigeria; or Coastal and Inland Shipping

(ii) if the majority of the voting power in such company is not held by citizens of Nigeria; or

(iii) if through any contract or understanding it is so arranged that more than 40 per centum of the voting power may be exercised, directly or indirectly on behalf of any person who is not a citizen of Nigeria; or

(iv) if by any other means whatsoever control of any interest in the company in excess of 40 per centum is conferred upon or permitted to be exercised by any person who is not a citizen of Nigeria.

While Protectionism has its merits particularly with shielding a country’s new industries from foreign competition and temporarily creating jobs, it might also have a converse impact as companies have the tendency of decline without competition.  The potential to outsource jobs and negatively impact economic growth are other demerits of protectionism.

A peek into other jurisdictions particularly, the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 otherwise called the “Jones Act” was signed into law on June 5, 1920, following a bill by Senator Jones, serving then as the chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, to encourage greater commercial use of U.S. ships. Among the provisions in Jones’s legislation were requirements that ships eligible to transport goods from one U.S. port to another must be U.S.-flagged, U.S.-built, U.S.- owned, and crewed by U.S. citizens. Today, those provisions require that such ships be at least 75 percent U.S.-owned, at least 75 percent U.S.- crewed, and assembled entirely in the United States with all “major components of the hull and superstructure” fabricated domestically.[15] Many critics of the Jones Act describe it as a burden and a foe to America’s economy as “Higher shipping rates are the most obvious cost of the Jones Act, but they are merely the first in a cascade of adverse consequences unleashed by the law’s restrictions.”[16]

The discontent with America’s Jones Act begs the question if our Cabotage Act is a friend or foe and this should set the tone for the invitation of liberalism to our maritime trade.

THE LIBERALISM OF THE AFRICAN CONTINENTAL FREE TRADE AGREEMENT (“AFCFTA”)

In January 2012, fifty-four African countries agreed to establish the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) during the 18th  Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The aim of this agreement was to create a single market for goods and services with ambitious long-term goals of deepening integration among AU member States, promoting the African Economic Community as envisaged in the 1991 Abuja Treaty of the Organisation of African Unity, and realising Africa’s Agenda 2063 to build a prosperous and united Africa.[17]

The AfCFTA envisages a borderless African Continental market as a step forward in reducing the cost of shipping in Africa in order to expand the intra-African trade from the traditional regional economic communities – where trade between African countries is currently domiciled – to the continental level to help diversify African economies and promote continental trade integration.[18] As a natural impact to this liberalisation, there could be an increase in containerised trade and port traffic volume as well as the need for cross-border maritime transportation between Nigeria and other African countries. One wonders what this will mean for Nigeria’s closed up maritime sector as the agreement and cabotage act seems at face value to be very distinct in objectives and totally opposed to each other.

THE MEETING POINT

While the AfCFTA might seek to liberalise trade among state parties, there have been an increasing conversation to support the position that any vessel that expects free and unlimited passage to trade in the African Continental Free Trade area needs to be flagged in an African State that is a party to the Agreement and in addition, hold 50 percent of its crew from a state party, or hold its equity shareholding in respect of the vessel in 50/50% equity from/with nationals of a state party

When placed side by side with the provisions of the Cabotage Act, it cannot be said that there is a contradiction as the requirements appear quite similar to those of the Cabotage Act in Nigeria which beyond protecting coastal shipping for indigenous operators has by way of waivers still left Cabotage trade open to foreign participation.

It is also suggested that the AfCFTA permits flagging, and foreign vessels take advantage to participate in Nigeria’s maritime trade using the mechanism of flags of convenience in a bid to attract the incentives bestowed on vessels plying the African waters by AfCFTA’s protocol on trade on goods.

CONCLUSION:

It is the opinion of the author that the protectionist policy of the Cabotage Act and the Liberalisation thrust of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement might seem divergent in principle but do not confront each other when tested in the practice of Nigeria’s maritime sector.  While there may also be discontentment with the Jones Act of America, the author of this piece opines that Nigeria’s cabotage Act is more of a friend than a foe to Nigeria’s economy as it will prevent capital flight in the booming maritime sector.

As a recommendation, it is imperative for the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) as created by section 44 of the Cabotage Act to be implemented religiously as that would increase the capacity of indigenous shipping companies and merchants to stay in the game to ensure that Nigerian waters are for Nigerian ships, and with the heightened capacity from this funding and the complementary support of ACFTA, Nigeria’s ships may lead in Africa’s waterways.


[1]Associate, Paul Usoro & Co., LL. B (University of Uyo) B.L(Bagauda, Kano)

[2] Sulaimon Salau, “Nigeria’s Huge Maritime Potential Remain Untapped” available at Nigeria’s huge maritime potential remain untapped | The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News — Business — The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News – accessed on 25 December 2019.

[3] David Thomas, “What you need to know about the African Continental Free Trade Area” available atWhat you need to know about the African Continental Free Trade Area – African Business accessed in February 2022

[4] Mfon Usoro “Liability Regime for Inland Carriage of Goods (Road, Rail and Inland Waterways)” paper presentation at Sheraton Hotel Abuja, July 2018

[5] Section 3-6 of the Cabotage Act

[6] Section 8 of the Cabotage Act

[7] Section 8(a) of the Cabotage Act

[8] Section 8(b) of the Cabotage Act

[9] Section 8(c) of the Cabotage Act

[11] Section 9-11 of the Cabotage Act

[12] Section 15-21 of the Cabotage Act

[13] Section 23(1) of the Cabotage Act

[14] Section 23(2) of the Cabotage Act

[15] C. Grabow, I. Manak & D. Ikenson, “The Jones Act – A Burden America Can No Longer Bear” available at The Jones Act: A Burden America Can No Longer Bear (cato.org) accessed on 16 August 2022

[16] ibid

[17] UNCTAD Research Paper No. 15, “African Continental Free Trade Area: Challenges and Opportunities of Tariff Reductions” available at African Continental Free Trade Area: Challenges and Opportunities of Tariff Reductions | UNCTAD accessed on 16 August 2022.

[18] The Maritime Executive, “What Will the African Continental Free Trade Area Mean for Shipping?” available on What Will the African Continental Free Trade Area Mean for Shipping? (maritime-executive.com) accessed on 16 August 2022.

PUC Facilitates Training on the Legal Framework for Combating Piracy and Other Maritime Crimes in Nigeria

Paul Usoro & Co. (“PUC”) was engaged by the Federal Ministry of Transport (“FMOT”), Nigeria to facilitate a 2-day training on the legal framework for combating piracy and other maritime crimes in Nigeria.

The training came up on the 26 – 27th of January 2022 in Abuja and covered the historical perspective to piracy, the substantive law on piracy in Nigeria (Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences Act 2019) and the practice and procedure of prosecuting maritime offences in Nigeria.

The PUC team at the training was led by our Managing Partner, Mrs. Mfon Usoro and the presentations were delivered by our Partner, Mrs. Adetola Bucknor-Taiwo, Senior Associate, Mr. Ime Edem Nse and Navy Captain Warradi Enisuoh as a guest speaker.

The event was insightful and well received by the participants.

PUC At The Nigeria International Maritime Summit (NIMS) 2021

Paul Usoro & Co was present at the recently concluded (5-6 October 2021) inaugural edition of the The Nigeria International Maritime Summit (NIMS) as a Platinum Sponsor.

Our Managing Partner, Mfon Ekong Usoro, was present as the Session Chair for the Opening Keynote Session – “Becoming a Significant Maritime Nation.” She also serves as the chairman of the Board of Governance at NIMS.

The event was very enlightening and featured engaging sessions that drew local and international professionals from the private and public sectors. Attendance was a combination of physical and virtual.