Ohaegbue Calls for Review of Licensing Fee

Emma Ohaegbue   managing director, Migfo Express Courier Freight has called for the review of the licensing fee charged by the Courier Regulatory Department, the regulatory body for the postal and courier sector in Nigeria saying that most courier operators are left with little or nothing to do the real business after paying the mandatory one million naira registration fee.
Ohaegbue said that courier services generally are facing financial problems and can not do much to move the industry forward. He said that lack of finance is responsible for the proliferation of mushroom courier companies in the country and frowned at banks refusal to give loans to entrepreneurs.
 “It becomes very difficult for banks to give loans these days except if you are highly connected or that you know somebody in the bank otherwise banks ordinarily are supposed to assist courier companies. As courier companies are opening up branches in various parts of the federation, they are also employing staff and putting other logistics in shape. This takes a lot of money. Courier business takes sometime before you start reaping return, “he said.
Ohaegbue explained that Migfo Express is derived from Migfo Group Nigeria Limited, a freight forwarding services company that has a bonded warehouse in Lagos.  He said the company incorporated courier business to assist Nigerians in the area of employment and informed that as soon as the company picked the courier license, it started the expansionist policy by opening up branches in the six geopolitical zones of the country to enhance good delivery of services.  The company offers haulage, freight, logistics and courier services. Ohaegbue revealed that the strength of the young courier outfit lies in its good service delivery saying that among its peers that the company competes favorably, stressing that, at some point courier used to be their niche area but that the entrance of transporters into the delivery of letters affected the margin of the business which necessitated their diversification into other areas.
Ohaegbue advocated for consolidation in the courier sector. According to him, if the registered courier companies can come together and merge it will augur well for the industry in terms of efficiency and capacity even as he also harped on the issue of professionalism in the sector.  He said that most people set up courier companies without employing courier professionals to run the business advising that such money bags should make out time to attend seminars organized by the Courier Regulatory Department.
He hinted that the company will go into extensive expansion before the end of last quarter of the year to beef up its haulage business.