Prince A. Adesanya - Cargoplus Nigeria - On Logistics and Freight Forwarding business in Nigeria.
This week Africa Business Communities meet with Prince Adenola Adesanya, a native of Ago Iwoye, Ogun State, Nigeria and a graduate of Olabisi Onabanjo University formerly Ogun State University. CEO at CARGOPLUS NIGERIA on Logistics and Freight Forwarding in Nigeria.
Tell us about yourself
“ I am Prince Adenola Adesanya, born on the 29th of July1970, my experience in Cargo business has taken me to various Cargo outfit with over 15years experience. Presently I am now the Chief Executive Officer of Cargoplus Nigeria.”
What new, positive changes can the freight forwarding fraternity look forward to in Nigeria?
“The number of Government Agencies should be reduced or well controlled to facilitate prompt clearing of cargo from our various ports.”
One of the major issues concerning the freight forwarding industry is weak availability of trained manpower. What steps must government take to tackle this problem?
“Since the demand of the trade is continuously escalating, it is vital to educate our manpower. What we have now are drop outs parading themselves as Agent, this issue needs to be addressed as we need more institute that will be recognized and monitored by government like the institute of chartered accountant etc.. Trainers from various regions are trained and they are then eligible to hold courses in their respective regions. The Government must duly recognize the freight forwarding agents and must be appointed to play a key role in Transport and commerce industry management.”
On the whole, how significant is the use of IT in facilitating the business of logistics and freight forwarding?
“Well, it has now become mandatory for Custom House Agents (CHAs) license holders to implement Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) if they have more than certain documents. Though I don’t think it is being strictly followed. Moreover, the government is should to introduce a central server with modern technology that will minimize the traditional cumbersome use of service centre’s since the central server will enable the CHAs to operate from their own offices. Here IT will play a very important role.”
Are funded? Do you need additional funding?
“Access to fund delays our service delivery so the relevance Government Agencies should fashion ways to assist the industry.”
The world economy is witnessing a revival which is naturally going to usher in more competition. What role can IT play in helping Nigeria's logistics industry, particularly freight forwarding, meet with the upcoming challenges?
“The Industry has come of age from making business deals through analogue telephony to digital and now through the Internet which make the world a global village. The cost and service delivery had been drastically reduced through the role of IT in enhancing our services. For instance the issue of TRACK and TRACE had been make communication easier and thus we have real time of status of shipment from the Airlines and vessels. IT has ushered in a lot of progress, by the virtue of which, the transition time and costs have come down drastically. However, we need to keep ourselves upgraded for which we need to use up-to-date software. Moreover, service levels have gone up due to IT. Internationally, consignments are cleared on the same day, but in Nigeria will still need to do more and all the Government agencies should deplore suitable software to enhance their services. We have to get on par to that level which can only be done by investing in state-of-the-art technology.”
Success comes to those who believe in themselves. What lessons can young industry entrepreneurs learn from your success story?
“Patience is a virtue. If you want to taste the fruit of success you have to develop the qualities of persistence and diligence, nothing can happen at the snap of the finger. In modern times it’s no good being the jack of all, you’ve to be the master and for that I would advocate the youth to take up specialization courses based on their interest and skill. At my end, I would like to motivate the youth somewhere on the lines of what International standard is obtained. The Government must encourage the youth by creating enabling environment in this line.”
What is the latest?
“With our successful expansion, the emphasis on service and customer relation remains paramount.”
Visit the page of Prince Adenola Adesanya
This article was originally posted on Nigeria Business Communities
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