In an exclusive interview with Anozie Egole, the Nigeria Chapter President of the African Shipowners Association, Captain Ladi Olubowale, outlines a transformative vision to position Africa as a self-reliant maritime power. He details plans for an African Strategic Fleet to carry the continent’s goods, condemned unjust war-risk insurance premiums, and revealed advanced talks with Afreximbank to establish a dedicated maritime finance window, marking a pivotal shift from advocacy to actionable investment in Africa’s blue economy
What is your long-term vision for African Shipowners Association?
Our long-term vision is simple yet transformative: to position Africa as a true maritime continent, one that owns, operates, and controls its trade fleet. For too long, Africa’s shipping has been dominated by foreign interests despite the continent contributing significantly to global trade volume. The future we envision is one where African-owned vessels carry African goods under African flags, with profits reinvested in African communities. We have a strategy to forge links with other shipowners in Nigeria and Africa to drive a common goal in the journey of the energy, alternative fuel, and green shipping agenda transition that affects all. Over the next decade, ASA aims to drive the creation of an African Strategic Fleet, a consortium of tankers, feeders, ferries, and multipurpose vessels jointly owned by African shipowners, governments, and private investors. These ships will serve both domestic cabotage and intra-African trade corridors, and also operate competitively on international routes. Our strategy emphasises green and digital shipping corridors, connecting African ports into a seamless network of sustainable logistics chains. ASA also envisions a maritime ecosystem where every bold and risk-taking African entrepreneur can aspire to own a ship, backed by innovative financing, leasing options, and policy support. In achieving this, ASA is transitioning from being merely an advocacy platform to a private-sector-driven institution. We are shifting focus toward action, investment, and implementation, ensuring that Africa’s maritime industry grows through African capital, African expertise, and African leadership.
Could you outline the key focus areas and significant accomplishments of your leadership tenure so far?
Since assuming leadership of ASA Nigeria, my top priorities have revolved around four core pillars, which are advocacy, financing, capacity development, and collaboration. These are strategies that are geared towards ship ownership. We have strengthened ASA’s engagement with key stakeholders, including the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, and regional authorities, to align national maritime policy with Africa’s continental aspirations. At the International Maritime Organisation, African Union, and African Association of Maritime Administrations, ASA, Nigeria has consistently advanced policy positions that reflect the realities of African shipowners, from insurance and safety reforms to decarbonisation and fleet financing. ASA at the continental level has always projected Africa’s stand in all the regulations and policies. We also redefined ASA membership to focus on active shipowners, operators, and core maritime players, ensuring that the association remains grounded in real industry activity rather than peripheral interests. Recognising that access to capital remains the single largest barrier to fleet development, we initiated dialogues with Afreximbank and other development finance institutions to create a blended finance window for African shipowners. Our goal is to establish structured mechanisms that combine development loans, equity investments, and leasing models, enabling local operators to acquire vessels under competitive terms. ASA–Nigeria has championed initiatives that link training to trade, a “train and trade” model. Through partnerships with shipyards and training academies in Nigeria, Africa, and Europe, we have designed programmes that allow cadets to gain real-world shipboard experience under private-sector mentorship. We have also participated in national and continental events as speakers, advocates, and contributors, influencing maritime education and blue economy policies. We have promoted unity across ASA national chapters, strengthening continental identity and cooperation. A major milestone was the launch of the African Green Shipping Initiative, an ASA-driven framework designed to prepare Africa for the global decarbonisation and green transition era. AGSI integrates climate action, digital transformation, and sustainability into Africa’s maritime growth story. Through these milestones, ASA–Nigeria has proven that collaboration, consistency, and competence can move Africa’s maritime industry from rhetoric to results.
What is the ASA’s position on the high war-risk insurance premiums currently burdening Nigerian importers?
ASA’s stance is firm and clear; Nigeria should not continue paying war-risk insurance premiums that are no longer justified. Our coastal waters have become significantly more secure due to increased naval patrols, improved intelligence sharing, and regional cooperation through the Yaoundé Architecture. ASA advocates for a data-driven reassessment of Nigeria’s maritime risk classification by global insurers. We are calling for the creation of a regional maritime insurance pool, strengthened maritime domain awareness systems, and a robust communication strategy to rebuild international confidence. This issue is not only economic but also reputational. Continued classification of Nigerian waters as “high-risk” undermines investment, discourages trade, and inflates logistics costs for African economies. ASA will persist in engaging insurers, underwriters, and governments until fairness is restored.
Could you describe the nature of the ASA’s engagements with the AU and national governments in shaping maritime policy for intra-African trade?
ASA has evolved into an institutional partner of the AU and its specialised maritime bodies. We work closely with the AU Department of Infrastructure and Energy, AAMA, and IMO to ensure African shipowners are visible and influential in continental decision-making. Our engagements include providing technical input for maritime legislation and policy reforms, hosting stakeholder dialogues on cabotage, ship finance, and blue economy frameworks, and supporting the African Maritime Transport Charter and AIMS 2050 implementation. We also collaborate with ministries and port authorities to ensure that Africa’s maritime private sector aligns with continental integration goals, including AfCFTA logistics frameworks and regional shipping corridors. Through these partnerships, ASA acts as a policy bridge connecting private-sector experience to public-sector strategies and ensuring that Africa’s maritime sector speaks with one voice.
“What is the ASA’s stance on implementing the AU’s AIMS 2050 strategy?
ASA is fully aligned with the 2050 Africa’s Integrated Maritime Strategy, which envisions a safe, secure, and sustainable African maritime domain. However, our role goes beyond endorsement; we aim to make AIMS 2050 actionable and bankable. As a private-sector-led body, ASA is transforming this long-term strategy into measurable outcomes with investments in shipbuilding, repair yards, and port facilities, green shipping programmes aligned with global decarbonisation targets, and job creation for African seafarers, officers, and port professionals. We believe that Africa’s maritime development must be investment-led, not aid-driven. The success of AIMS 2050 will depend on its translation into viable business opportunities that attract private capital and empower indigenous operators.
How is ASA supporting the African Continental Free Trade Area through the development of indigenous shipping capacity?
The African Continental Free Trade Area represents a $3.4 tn opportunity, but its logistics backbone must be African. ASA believes AfCFTA cannot succeed if African trade continues to depend on non-African ships. We advocate for the creation of coastal feeder networks connecting regional economies, the development of short-sea shipping routes to reduce road congestion and transit costs, and the adoption of shipping preference clauses within AfCFTA’s framework, ensuring priority for African-flagged or African-controlled vessels. By integrating shipping into AfCFTA’s logistics framework, Africa can cut freight costs, build industrial competitiveness, and retain value within the continent.
What are the biggest maritime logistics challenges threatening the success of AfCFTA, and how can ASA help solve them?
Africa’s maritime logistics still faces critical bottlenecks like non-availability of vessels for chartering in the country and Africa, port inefficiencies and congestion, fragmented customs and documentation systems, limited access to shipping finance, and inadequate connectivity between coastal and inland economies. ASA’s interventions include promoting single-window customs systems to streamline trade, encouraging investment in coastal fleet expansion, and developing maritime economic corridors linking production hubs with export gateways.
Given the minimal proportion of Africa’s maritime trade handled by African-owned vessels, what specific initiatives is the ASA undertaking to rectify this imbalance?
We are promoting an African Fleet Development Plan, which encourages countries to co-invest in tankers, ferries, and bulk carriers through public-private partnerships. This model allows governments to provide enabling policy frameworks while private operators bring expertise and management efficiency. ASA is also advocating for a continental ship registry framework harmonising standards, enhancing safety compliance, and attracting global charters under African flags. The goal is not just to own ships, but to operate competitive, efficient, and sustainable African fleets.
What are the main challenges for African shipowners, and how is the ASA helping to solve them?
African shipowners face several systemic challenges, such as high capital costs and short loan tenors, limited access to technical support, and weak economies of scale. Capability development in core technical skill sets in the maritime industry. ASA is addressing these barriers through blended finance models combining equity, development credit, and leasing, shared fleet management systems that reduce operating expenditure, and policy advocacy for sovereign guarantees and fiscal incentives that make vessel ownership bankable. By institutionalising these interventions, ASA is turning aspiration into access and access into ownership.
What strategies is the ASA exploring to enhance the availability of capital for maritime entrepreneurs across Africa?
To unlock maritime financing, ASA is leading efforts to establish an African Fleet Financing Framework. This framework will blend equity participation from investors, the Cabotage Vessels Financing Fund funding for Nigerian shipowners, operating lease arrangements for smaller operators, and revenue-backed charter structures that secure long-term cash flow for lenders. We are working to make financing more inclusive, ensuring even small and medium-sized African operators can access vessels without prohibitive collateral requirements.
Is the ASA collaborating with banks to fund local fleet growth?
ASA has engaged actively with Afreximbank, African finance institutions, and regional DFIs to create a dedicated Maritime Finance Window. This facility will de-risk ship acquisition, provide guarantees and insurance instruments, and offer refinancing options for operators expanding regional coastal fleets. Such collaboration marks a historic shift, positioning maritime as a recognised investment sector within Africa’s broader development finance ecosystem. Our recent engagements with Afreximbank opened strong discussion areas where the industry needs Afreximbank financial instruments to be restructured to suit African shipowners and the private sector’s inclusion in the maritime ecosystem.
Could you detail ASA’s collaborative efforts with international maritime organizations to enhance Africa’s shipping sector?
ASA maintains strong relationships with the International Maritime Organisation, AAMA, and global shipowners’ chambers to align Africa with international best practices. Through these collaborations, ASA enhances Africa’s visibility, credibility, and access to technical cooperation in technical areas, environmental and governance, and inclusion. This engagement ensures that African shipowners are not isolated but integrated into the global shipping dialogue as active contributors.
“Could you describe the strategic importance of your collaborations with international maritime entities?
We have adopted a “train & trade” model, combining cadetship training with real-time commercial operations. This is the only sustainable, private-led solution to Africa’s maritime training deficit. Through member companies, ASA facilitates on-board training that produces competent officers, engineers, and deckhands ready for global certification. By integrating education with enterprise, we are bridging the gap between classroom knowledge and shipboard competence.
QUOTE
“The future we envision is one where African-owned vessels carry African goods under African flags, with profits reinvested in African communities.”
