President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Dakuku Peterside, on his election as the new Chairman of the Association of African Maritime Administrators, AAMA.

This was contained in a statement by the President’s media aide, Femi Adesina, on Saturday.

The election that produced Peterside as chairman was held at the end of the Third Annual Conference of AAMA, in Abuja on Friday.

President noted that the new development was not only a personal honour to Peterside but it also placed Nigeria in a pivotal position to coordinate other maritime administrations in Africa collaboration with the International Maritime Organisation, IMO, towards safer global maritime activities.

“President Buhari believes that given NIMASA’s encouraging performance under Dr. Peterside especially in the fight against sea piracy through inter-agency cooperation, he has no doubt that his new position provides him with an even bigger platform to forge ahead in doing the nation proud by meeting the objectives of AAMA,” Adesina stated.

Buhari, while wishing the new Chairman of AAMA a successful one-year tenure, expressed confidence that within the period, the Federal Government’s renewed focus on growing the Nigerian economy through increased maritime resources would be further enhanced.

AAMA is an umbrella body of 5 African Maritime stakeholders’ group namely: Association of African Maritime Administrators, Africa Ship Registrars’ Forum, African Ship Owners’ Associations, Africa Shippers’ Council and all Cargo Interest and Seafarers’ Forum.

Peterside takes over from the interim AAMA chairman, Sobantu Tilayi, who is also the acting Chief Executive Office, CEO, of the South African Maritime Safety Authoity, SAMSA.

The first and second editions of the AAMA conference held in Kenya and South Africa in 2012 and 2013 respectively.