Flag vessels law may create some difficulties for feeder operators

The container feeder vessels calling at the Chattogram port are set to face fresh troubles as the Bangladesh Flag Vessels (Protection of Interest) Act has made it mandatory for them to obtain waiver certificate.

It must be secured 15 days before loading cargoes.

The law, passed in November 18 last year, mandated Bangladeshi flag vessels to carry at least 50 percent of the sea-borne cargoes of foreign trade of the country.

The foreign vessels will have to obtain waiver certificate from the Mercantile Marine Department in Chattogram, 15 days before they load cargo to and from Bangladesh so that national flagged vessels can get adequate cargoes.

In a notice last month, the department said the provision will be effective from October 15 next, which the feeder vessel operators find to be a bottleneck for their trade.

"For obtaining the certificate of waiver under clause (b) of subsection (1) of section (3), the owner of the vessel or his agent shall have to make an application to the prescribed authority at least 15 (Fifteen) working days before loading of cargoes," the department notice said.

The Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association (BSSA) chairman Ahsanul Huq Chowdhury, in a recent letter to the Department of Shipping, said most of the voyage time to and from the Chattogram port and to the ports in the sub-continent or neighbouring countries require a maximum of five days.

So, selecting vessel 15 days before, booking cargoes, and applying for waiver certificate is not possible for the operators, he said.

Mr Chowdhury argued most of the countries offer various facilities to support export-import trade. Similarly, in Bangladesh, the Chattogram Port Authority also relaxed cut-off/gate in time of outbound containers to facilitate apparel exports.

"The new circular of the Mercantile Marine Office will hamper apparel export of the country," he wrote.

The BSAA president said on Sunday the government has taken various measures to help revive trade during the coronavirus period.

"The new circular can be put on hold for the pandemic days," he said adding obtaining waiver certificate 15 days before is not a logical option.

Mr Chowdhury said while enacting the law the authorities concerned did not take into consideration the views expressed by the association.

Presently, Bangladesh has only two container vessels and 70 cargo vessels, which can carry only a minimal portion of the country's sea-borne foreign trade goods.

Annually the country's total expenditure for freight services is nearly US$8.0 billion, of which only $200 million is carried by Bangladesh flag vessels.

MMD principle officer Captain Giashuddin Ahmed acknowledged that applying for waiver certificate 15 days before is not feasible for short voyage vessels.

"After the gazette of the act was published, the MMD held a seminar in presence of shipping agents where I raised the issue, saying that applying 15 days before is not practical," he said.

Mr Ahmed said the application days can be at best four to five days.

He, however, said the MMD has nothing to do with the change in the provision.

The government high-ups need to take measures in this regard, he added.