Vincent Toritseju
Lagos — The Minister of Transportation, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi has identified marine environment management as a crucial factor that enables the maritime sector contribute to national economic growth.
According to him, a clean and safe marine environment is the bedrock that ensures the entire maritime industry contributes significantly to the growth of a nation.
Speaking at the exit ceremony in the honour of Dr. Felicia Mogo who also launched her book following her retirement, Amaechi said, “Maritime is key to national development and we can’t talk about this without the marine environment. It is in this area that Dr. Mogo has made impressive records with over two decades spent trying to make reforms in environmental assessment, especially for the oil and gas sector.”
Mogo, the former Director, Marine Environment Management Department at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), launched an industry book titled: “Regulating the Marine Environment of Africa for Sustainable Blue Economy – the Nigeria Scenario,” to celebrate her exit from public service.
Noting that the usual fear of most public servants is the uncertainty of life after service, Amechi stressed that the basic thing is the contribution attained during one’s service years.
“Dr. Mogo has an impressive and well documented record which is why we are celebrating her today. She is an environmentalist and her pedigree has been evident on the global terrain where she has represented Nigeria and NIMASA admirably. You can’t conclude the functions of NIMASA or talk about maritime without talking about environmental issues and you can’t ignore the contribution of Dr. Mogo in that area,” he added.
Earlier, the chairperson of the occasion, Dr. Anne Ene-Ita, stressed that it is imperative for the government to fully explore the potentials of the blue economy, noting that giving credence to Dr. Mogo’s book will be a good way to show commitment to the sector.
Ene-Ita, the former Senior Special Adviser to the President on Aviation Reforms, described Mogo as a national asset and a global personality on marine environment management.
“Dr. Mogo has been an energetic and enterprising young woman since her maiden employment in the Federal Ministry of Works. This book is worth having and we need to disseminate the book at secondary and tertiary levels to get young ones involved in maritime,” she said.
Mogo said the book is a product of her wealth of experience over the years in Nigeria’s marine environment.
Her words: “I have had the opportunity to incubate insights about stewarding our resources for sustainable development. Specifically, I have spent considerable time reflecting on Nigeria’s marine environment which holds enormous potential for our sustainable growth as a nation, and yet remains understated.”
“For over ten years, I have toyed with the idea of documenting my ideas on how to optimize Nigeria’s marine environment for the benefit of its entire population. I am glad to have finally made this idea a reality via this book.”