NIMASA: How Mobereola Is Tackling Challenges and Building Momentum

By temperament and management style, Dr. Dayo Mobereola has quietly delivered on his mandate while driving meaningful change at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency. Thirty months into his tenure, he has steadily and boldly broken new ground, resolved long-standing controversies away from the spotlight, and helped position the organisation in the news for positive reasons.

The Deep Blue Project by NIMASA has strengthened maritime surveillance, helped the sector thrive, and earned Nigeria greater global recognition. Through the project, Nigeria has maintained a record of zero piracy attacks, reduced war-risk insurance premiums and restored confidence in its maritime domain. With Dangote Refinery increasing activity in Nigerian waters and offering major economic potential, safe waters remain essential because insecurity would deter investors.

The Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF), dormant for years, gained fresh momentum. Its implementation is taking effect under Dr Mobereola. The fund kept with the CBN has been regularised, and notices announcing its availability have been published in local and international journals. As of April 2026, more than 60 applications had been received since the portal opened in January 2026. Dr Dayo Mobereola, the agency’s Director General, has pledged that the disbursement process will be transparent and closely monitored.

The activation of ship owners’ funds is timely, especially as Dangote Refinery expands activity in Nigerian waters and offers significant economic potential under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda. Safe waters and incentives for ship owners remain critical, as insecurity would deter investors. It is the duty of NIMASA to ensure that wet cargo affreightment and crude oil delivery vessels operating at Dangote Ports comply with local laws without breaching federal regulations.

While fulfilling NIMASA’s mandate, Dr Mobereola has also prioritised staff welfare and career growth. Under his leadership, the agency strengthened promotions and workforce support, including a merit-based exercise approved by the Governing Board in August 2025 that elevated 243 employees, among them nine new directors. Dr Mobereola said the exercise reflected management’s commitment to staff welfare and a transparent career progression system. This has translated into improved efficiency in functions and service delivery. 

For Dr Mobereola, the highlight of 2025 was Nigeria’s election into Category C of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) after 14 years of unsuccessful attempts. The achievement was aided by Nigeria’s zero-piracy record in its waters and diplomatic engagements led by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy and Dr Mobereola.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu formally commended NIMASA’s management, describing the achievement as a strong affirmation of Nigeria’s growing influence in global maritime governance. He added that the election reflected international confidence in Nigeria’s commitment to maritime safety, security, environmental stewardship, and rules-based operations.

NIMASA and Marine Education

NIMASA conceived and promoted the establishment of the Nigeria Maritime University (NMU) in Okerenkoko, Delta State, to drive specialised manpower development. Alongside NMU, NIMASA also partners with other domestic bodies—such as establishing a maritime institute at the University of Lagos—and maintains high-level educational partnerships like its MoU with the World Maritime University in Sweden.

One area where Dr Mobereola ruffled feathers when he came on board was in his bold determination to reform the Nigeria Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP), a capacity-building initiative launched in 2008/2009 to train young Nigerians as globally competitive marine officers and naval architects. It was developed to fix the shortage of trained local seafarers for ocean-going vessels and coastal shipping (Cabotage).

The programme had accumulated significant debts to foreign institutions where some students were enrolled, while others were studying courses unrelated to the maritime sector. Dr Mobereola took a firm stance by ordering an audit of the programme and temporarily suspending further payments until a proper review had been completed.

Amid dwindling foreign exchange, NIMASA explored alternative approaches to overseas sponsorship and deepened its long-standing strategic partnership with the University of Lagos (UNILAG) to strengthen maritime human capital and research. The collaboration reached a major milestone in April 2026, when the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy commissioned the ultra-modern NIMASA–UNILAG Institute of Maritime Studies (IMS) building, establishing a world-class training hub on the university campus.

Through the IMS facility, NIMASA delivered a multi-purpose building equipped with modern lecture rooms, specialised laboratories, and advanced learning resources. The partnership also reviews and aligns academic programmes with current international maritime standards, covering maritime law, shipping management, port operations, logistics, and marine environmental studies.

NIMASA is also aligning digitalisation and optimisation research with its Maritime Enhanced Monitoring System (MEMS). The partnership gives postgraduate and doctoral researchers practical exposure to vessel tracking, port efficiency, and the Federal Government’s National Single Window project.

Under Dr Mobereola, NIMASA has entered a new phase of progress. His leadership has addressed long-standing challenges while strengthening revenue performance, maritime security, workforce development, and staff promotion. With revenue growing steadily since he assumed office, the years ahead look promising as the agency builds fresh momentum.

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