Bayo Akomolafe 
The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has said that negative attitude towards financial accountability and underper formance would no longer be tolerated.
Declaring the retreat open, the Managing Director of the authority, Mr Bola Oyebamiji stressed the need for improved performance across all NIWA offices, particularly in revenue generation, expressing concern over the underperformance of some area offices, citing cases where annual revenue figures were as low as one or two million naira.
He called on the management and staff of the authority to show renewed commitment to boosting revenue generation, enforcing accountability and improving the operational efficiency of the organisation.
Also, Oyebamiji addressed the challenges in debt recovery, revealing that many area managers failed to cooperate with the debt recovery consultant appointed in 2024.
He said: “This situation is simply unacceptable. Despite management’s provision of resources, incentives and training opportunities, the expected results were not achieved. Moving forward, stricter measures will be enforced to ensure accountability and drive performance.
“In some instances, debtors were either untraceable or provided inconsistent financial records, making recovery efforts difficult.”
The retreat, which brings together key stakeholders including the honourable minister of marine and blue economy, the chairman of the house committee on inland waterways, the NIWA board, management staff, and security personnel, aims at providing a comprehensive review of the authority’s 2024 performance and establish strategic targets for 2025.
With new government directives under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the leadership of Oyetola, NIWA has been tasked with additional responsibilities, including: “Increased revenue remittances from the port development levy, in addition to the existing 50 per cent revenue deduction at source; improved service delivery to meet the expectations of the general public and stakeholders in the maritime sector, enhanced collaboration with sister agencies under the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy to improve efficiency.”
He emphasised that beyond reviewing past performance, the retreat would also focus on capacity building and teamwork to ensure that every officer was well-equipped to meet the set goals.
Oyebamiji added: “This retreat is not just about evaluating past performance; it is about strategising for the future. I encourage all participants to engage actively, exchange ideas, and work collectively towards making NIWA a leading agency in the marine and blue economy sector.” he concluded.
The two-day retreat featured panel discussions, training sessions and interactive engagements aimed at strengthening NIWA’s operational framework and fostering a culture of efficiency, accountability and innovation.
