By Lamin Njie
Information Officer
Ministry of Transport
Honorable Ebrima Sillah, the Minister for Transport, Works and Infrastructure has been recently appointed as the first vice chairperson of the Maritime Organization of West and Central Africa known as (MOWCA), during its 18th Ordinary Session recently held in Congo, Brazzaville
Speaking at the event, Minister Sillah said that the Maritime Organization of West and Central Africa has since begun a transformation process and has registered significant milestones during the past twelve months.
He said the challenges facing the organization are multifaceted and it includes inadequate financial resources to acute human capacity problems which are key to effectively running the programs of MOWCA, stating that the commitment of members must be amplified to register meaningful success for the regional body that is aiming to transform into a continental maritime organization.
“ Nearly half a century when the founding fathers of this august maritime body set for it noble objective of serving as an inter-governmental sub-regional platform for sectorial cooperation in the field of maritime transport which has become more relevant today, its members can only boast of little achievement. This is indeed sad, and time has now become expedient for the organization’s membership to redouble their efforts both in terms of honoringfinancial contributions and commitment to participate in statutory meetings and other important matters in pursuit of MOWCA’s transformative agenda,” he said.
According to Minister Sillah, it will be remiss not to mention the huge potential that our combined maritime domain offers which remains highly untapped, from the exploitation of marine resources to the creation of coastal shipping services and employment.