Multimodal investigation will reduce accidents – NSIB
The director-general of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), Captain Alex Badeh Jr has said that with the transformation of the bureau into a multimodal transport investigation agency, Nigeria has taken a strategic step towards improving safety on all modes of transportation, reducing accident rates. The NSIB, formerly Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), now investigates accidents […]
The director-general of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), Captain Alex Badeh Jr has said that with the transformation of the bureau into a multimodal transport investigation agency, Nigeria has taken a strategic step towards improving safety on all modes of transportation, reducing accident rates.
The NSIB, formerly Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), now investigates accidents and incidents on all modes of transportation.
Recently, the bureau unveiled regulations for rail, maritime and air transport investigations as it operates with its new multimodal status and secures stakeholders’ buy-in on the new role.
At an interactive session with journalists on the new regulations, the director-general said that with its new status, the bureau is now responsible for all modes of transportation.
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He said it would be an anomaly for the regulators to also act as investigators when there are accidents or incidents in their sector.
For the maritime industry, the DG stated that the recognised agency by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) for investigation of accidents and incidents in marine transportation is the NSIB.
This, he stated, closed the hitherto existing gap where the Nigerian Maritime and Safety Administration (NIMASA) was acting as both a regulator and investigator.
He said, “The best practice all over the world is that we usually have an independent investigative body outside the regulator. NIMASA, which is a regulator just like the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) back then was recognised as the investigator by IMO because it was the only one doing that, but with the passing of the NSIB 2022 Act, that gave us the power to investigate other modes of transportation. But remember we didn’t have this regulation.
“We are not doing this on our own, we work with the IMO to do this. We are recognised by the IMO and once we stabilise and all that, there will be more information to reflect the new status of the NSIB.”
He reiterated that the newly unveiled draft Maritime Safety Investigation Regulations 2025, Railways (Investigation of Accident and Incidents) Regulation 2024 and the Civil Aviation (Investigation of Air Accidents and Incidents) Regulations, 2025 are like the bible that would guide the conduct of investigations in those sub-sectors of the nation’s transport industry.
He stated that the bureau is working with various stakeholders to deepen safety in all modes of transportation which is the overarching objective of transforming into a multimodal investigation agency.
The newly unveiled 46-page Marine Safety Investigation Regulations 2025 has 29 chapters and 14 schedules while the Railways (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Regulation is a 42-page document with nine parts and two schedules while the civil aviation (investigation of air accidents and incidents) regulations built on the existing regulations for the investigation of air transport.
According to him, the bureau is in the process of engaging experts in all the modes of transportation to fast-track the investigation process.
He said: “Engagement of investigations in other modes of transportation is a work in progress. Some of them will resume by September. We intend to engage retired personnel and of course we are hoping to get people seconded from the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) and NIMASA, train them and teach them the procedures of our investigations.
“We also have some people who will be going to the United Kingdom in September for a course. Our safety investigators for now are air safety investigators and we are working on getting them to acquaint themselves with the basic modes of other forms of transportation.”