The Coordinator, 2050 African Integrated Maritime Strategy (AIMS) Task force in the African Union Commission, Mr. Samuel Kame Domguia has assured the African Ship owners of the commitment of the African Development Bank (ADB) towards providing financial support to enable them own and build ships in Africa.
Speaking at the ongoing African Maritime Conference with the theme,” Africa Cargo for African Shipowners”, Domguia reiterated that ship building and ownership requires some strong financial support hence the resolve of the ADB in this regard.
According to him,” African Development Bank is very committed on this agenda and there will be a very strong support to African private sector in this field. As I mentioned, it is not just a matter of having ships owned by Africans but these ships should be built by Africans in Africa. So, it requires some strong financial support”.
On the non availability of technology to make this happen in most of the Africa countries, Domguia who also represented the Chairperson of the African Union Commission at the event observed that it only takes determination and hard work to have the technology required to drive the vision adding that,” we should work towards developing the capacity to build our ships”.
He continued,” We cannot fold our arms saying we don’t have this, we don’t have that. What does it take to have it? It takes brain and if brain power is the first asset, I believe we have the brain power to drive that agenda in Africa. I repeat that there is an agenda, there is a strategy we have put in place, we have to develop, we have to implement this strategy and we have what it takes.
“So, it is our responsibility, you know most of the times we intend to put the responsibility on other, it is time now that we show responsibility and that is why for me, the first step is, if we decide that this is our responsibility, we will make it”.
On the Africa Decade of Seas and Oceans, the AU chieftain informed that the decade launched on July 25, 2015 at the African Union Commission was the decision of the Heads of Government of the African Union adopting the 2050 African Integrated Maritime Strategy with a 10 year roadmap to implement specific aspects of the 2050 AIMS Strategy.
“One of the Strategy is developing ships built in Africa by Africans, developing capacity building in Africa as we just mentioned earlier and we expect to have this critical milestone to be met with interim objectives as we meet regularly in forums like this where we are able to say next year where we are, what we have been able to put in place”, he said.
He added that they were to ensure that they were working hard together to make the dream happen so that when the people of the next generation met in forums like that, they won’t challenge the status of the mindset of the present generation as according to him,” at the end of the day, it is about the mindset that we have”.
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