CRFFN ROLE IN INDUSTRY
Section 30 of act number 16 of 2007 establishing the Council For the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria defines the freight forwarder as any person or company who arranges the carriage or movement of goods and associated formalities on behalf of an importer or exporter along the international boundaries of sea ports, cargo airports or land border stations.
Deduced from the above definition, therefore, the role of freight forwarding in the transport industry includes but not limited to:
- Organize cargo transportation and all other supply chain formalities from its source of origin to the final destination.
- Undertake the efficient customs and other port processes of cargo clearance both at the ports of loading and discharge.
- Undertake and ensure smooth intermodal connection and transportation of cargo where applicable.
- Ensure time and cost saving in cargo handling while observing international industry best practices, distinctive individual disciplines and corporate governance standards.
- Comply with the relevant laws and the rule of law in the discharge of the functions of freight forwarding in transportation and international trade.
The role of CRFFN in the freight forwarding profession
Section 4 of act number 16 of 2007 establishing the council charged it with the general duty of:
- Regulating and controlling the practice of freight forwarding.
- Performing any other functions conferred on the council by this act.
- Determining the persons or cases of persons who constitute freight forwarders for the purposes of this act.
- Regulating and controlling all the associations of freight forwarding agents.
- Regulating and controlling persons who are engaged in freight forwarding.
- Ensuring uniform standards of professional conduct and education, relevant to freight forwarding practice.
- Promoting the highest standard of competence, practice and conduct among members of the profession.
- Encouraging participation of members in international exchange programme
- Determining the standards of knowledge and skill to be attained by persons seeking to be registered as freight forwarders and raising those standards from time to time in accordance with international industry practice.
- Securing, in accordance with the provisions of this act the establishment and maintenance of registers of persons entitled to practice as registered freight forwarders and the publication from time to time of the list of such persons
In a nutshell therefore, the role of CRFFN in freight forwarding includes but not limited to regulating and controlling the practice of freight forwarding, and promoting the highest standard of competence, practice and conduct among members of the profession.