The creation of the National Secretariat of Waterways and Aquatic Transportation was published in the Official Gazette this Tuesday (9), through Decree No. 11,979. The document approves the Regulatory Structure, the reallocation of positions for the establishment of the new branch of the Ministry of Ports and Airports, and transforms commissioned positions into trust functions of the ministry.
Behind-the-scenes information indicates that Dino Antunes Dias Batista, director of the Department of Navigation and Waterways, will be appointed secretary of the new entity in the coming days, and that the Navigate Simple program, aimed at streamlining the port sector, will be launched on the 18th.
The creation of the Waterways Secretariat was a promise from the Minister of Ports, Silvio Costa Filho, to develop the waterway mode in Brazil. The new entity will be responsible for public management and policies aimed at the sector, while the National Department of Transport Infrastructure (DNIT), under the Ministry of Transport, will take care of the infrastructure.
In past occasions, experts in the waterway sector have said that this division of responsibilities between the two ministries is not the ideal model, but having an entity solely responsible for this type of transportation will make a noticeable – and positive – difference in the development of this segment. Source: BE News Portal
