NIWA, LASWA commends WABOTAN for boat operator training

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) and the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) have commended the Waterfront Boat Owners and Transporters Association of Nigeria (WABOTAN) for organizing a training program for boat operators in the state from Lagos.

Speaking after the event held in Lagos on the theme “Capacity Development of Boat/Ferry Crews for Safer Transport on Inland Waterways”, NIWA Regional Director, engineer Sarat Braimah, explained that training like this will improve the expertise of boat skippers who drive passenger boats through the Lagos Lagoon.

According to Sarat Braimah, who was represented by Elsie Egwatu, the agency's Lagos Area Navy Officer, "As we used to say, if you don't train them, you can't If the boat operators and skippers do not know what is expected of them when crossing the Lagos Lagoon with passengers, there is no way they will be able to comply with the safety rules when operating the boat. along waterways.

"WABOTAN has just arrived, and we at NIWA are very impressed with it. The new association has started by organizing programs that have a positive impact on society. At NIWA, we are always keen and passionate about keeping our accident-free waterways, so we are ready to work with any association that shares this vision for our waterways.

"WABOTAN has shown through this training that they are prepared to ensure an accident free waterway; Lagos. You can see that boat operators are here in large numbers, and with this type of training we expect see an accident-free waterway in the weeks and months to come."

The Regional Director of NIWA Lagos then advised other boat operator associations to follow in the footsteps of WABOTAN by organizing training for boat operators to ensure an accident free waterway in Lagos.< /p>

Also speaking after the training programme, LASWA Managing Director, Mr. Damilola Emmanuel explained that the state government is always happy to collaborate in any initiative that will bring development to the waterways of the region. 'State.

In the words of the Managing Director of LASWA: "We at LASWA are always very happy to support any initiative that will bring development to our waterways. Such a training program should improve the skills of boat operators. This will eliminate boating accidents on state waterways in the long term.

"When WABOTAN first started, we urged them to look inward and train these guys who sail their boats. We're glad that's happening and we'll be encouraging them to do more because more waterways are what we want to see in Lagos.”

The WABOTAN training brought together resource persons from the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) , Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) and Lagos State Waterways Android (LASWA).