ZAINAB JUNAID
Reflecting on the activities of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) since the appointment of Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR as the Acting Comptroller General of the Service by the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on June 19, 2023, till he was confirmed substantive Comptroller General of Customs three months after, the Service has continued to experience tremendous transformation in all ramifications till date.
CGC Adewale, a serving career Customs Officer before his appointment, and also a fellow, former Vice President of Nigeria Public Relations(NIPR), hit the ground running immediately he assumed duty as the Comptroller General of the Service, His vision went beyond facilitating trade, ensuring national security and enhancing revenue collection, to ensuring the Service activities aligned with global Customs Best practices.
Nigeria Customs Service successfully witnessed significant strides under the stewardship of CGC Adewale Adeniyi, through policy measures implemented to achieve the Service four core statutory responsibilities of trade Facilitation, revenue collection, protection of society, and collaboration with stakeholders.
The Comptroller General of Customs at a Press conference held at the Service Headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, to recount activities of the Service one year after his appointment, confirmed NCS under the guidance of the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has seen transition from the repealed Customs and Excise Act of 2004 to the newly signed Nigeria Customs Service Act of 2023.
The new act which strengthened the modernization of NCS operations, compliance, and enforcement, with features that promote innovation within the Service, ensures an extensive sensitization efforts for all stakeholders involved in the customs process, thus informing them about the new laws and implications of the features introduced in the NCS Act of 2023.
It also form the basis for several trade facilitation measures currently being pursued by NCS. “These measures include: recent transition from the Fast Track 2.0 to the Authorized Economic Operators (AEO) concept. Participants in the AEO program stand to benefit from expedited customs clearance processes, reduced inspections, priority treatment, and enhanced predictability in customs clearance. This transition has advanced beyond the critical stage of stakeholder engagement, with seven beneficiaries, including importers, exporters, logistics companies, customs brokers, and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), now set to be involved in the pilot stage.
“The Advanced Ruling system on its part represents a notable stride in aligning NCS operations with global best practices, in line with the recommendations of the World Customs Organisation (WCO) and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). This initiative is now at an advanced stage of implementation.
“In February 2024, NCS launched an extensive Time Release Study (TRS) with the support of both the Honourable Minister of Finance, and the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, as well as the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy. The objective of the study is to identify bottlenecks in the clearance process and ensure adequate measures are taken to resolve these issues.
“Another significant measure put in place to eliminate inefficiencies in Nigeria’s trading environment and re-emphasize the pursuit of trade facilitation by NCS was the dissolution of ad-hoc enforcement teams that constituted multiple layers of checkpoints and hindered trade.
“Also in response to the need for dedicated terminals to process export goods, the Lilypond Command of the Service was designated to handle export transactions,” the CGC said.
Having deployed above measures, an initiative that aligns NCS statutory responsibilities with Mr. President’s Policy Advisory Document (PAD), CGC Adewale revealed that the Service has successfully recorded the following key milestones – In Revenue collection. The NCS has a remarkable 74% growth in revenue collection over the past year, recording a total revenue collection of N 4.49 trillion between June 2023 and May 2024, compared to the N 2.58 trillion collected during the corresponding period of the previous year.
This achievement according to him, was underpinned by a sustained increase of 70.13% in average monthly revenue collection compared to the previous year.
“NCS recorded an average monthly revenue collection of N 343 billion, compared to the N 202 billion monthly average. Notably, there was a substantial 122.35% rise in revenue collection during the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in the previous year. These gains were attributed to various strategic initiatives, including: N 15 billion Recovery by the Revenue Review Performance Recovery exercise, N 2.79 billion Recovered from the 90-day window for the regularization of the documents of uncustomed vehicles, N 1.5 billion Recovered from the decongestion of 1,705 overtime containers and 981 vehicles from the port.
Continuing he said, on June 13, 2024, NCS recorded a daily All-Time-High of N 58.5 billion in revenue collection, The deployment of officers to sensitive posts on the basis of merit and capacity.
On Trade Facilitation, the Comptroller General said Significant achievements have been made in this category, including: The decongestion of ports and the reopening of previously inaccessible access roads; Particularly noteworthy is the NCS’s recent ranking under the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), which aims to streamline business operations in Nigeria through reforms and policies. Ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) are ranked by activities under eight broad indicator levels, including efficiency reforms based on service delivery within stipulated timelines, transparency reforms, the review and update of Service Level Agreements, and support for manufacturing and agriculture export. Between 2020 and 2022, the NCS maintained an average percentage score of 18.45%, ranking 28th out of the 37 MDAs ranked. By 2023, the NCS ranking fell further to 34th out of 39 MDAs, with a percentage score of 18.53%. However, by 2024, I am delighted to announce that the NCS moved up 33 places, now tied at the top with 4 other MDAs out of the 36 MDAs assessed, with a percentage score of 100%, marking a 81.5% increase. This remarkable improvement is directly attributed to the trade facilitation measures implemented within the past year. The NCS remains committed to ensuring that all recommendations and global best practices are implemented to the highest standard.
Similarly, the designation of a dedicated terminal for exports has yielded significant gains, facilitating the processing of export goods through the Lilypond command, the CGC said.
“Initially handling 317 Single Goods Declarations (SGDs) in transactions, the terminal now manages 7,464 SGDs, accounting for 19.49% of the total 38,294 export transactions recorded in 2023. By the first quarter of 2024, the Service has processed a total of 10,786 transactions, with 3,162 (29.32%) of these processed through the dedicated export terminal”.
- Protection of the Society. The NCS’s anti-smuggling efforts in the past year have intensified, resulting in significant interceptions, high-value seizures, and numerous arrests.
- Notably, the Service recorded 63 seizures related to animal and wildlife products valued at ₦566 million. Additionally, seven seizures of arms and ammunition were made through our ports and borders. In terms of illicit drugs, a combined total of 127 cases involving narcotics and pharmaceutical products were seized, valued at over ₦6 billion.
- The Service also recorded 724 seizures of 2.93 million litres of PMS (Premium Motor Spirit) that were attempted to be smuggled out of the country. The illegal dealings in petroleum evacuation have garnered the interest of relevant stakeholders, and the ongoing Operation Whirlwind will continue to intercept and disrupt the activities of smugglers in this regard.
- In a bid to guarantee food security and suppress the smuggling of food in and out of the country, the Service recorded 1,744 cases of rice and grain seizures valued at ₦4.4 billion. These concerted efforts underscore the NCS’s commitment to protecting society and ensuring national security.
- Collaboration. The 81.5% gain in the service reform indices under the PEBEC ranking can be attributed to the recent trade facilitation and collaborative engagements of the NCS. These efforts have led to smoother operations with stakeholders, facilitated by regular interactions.
- The NCS has now instituted a routine to update the public on its activities through quarterly reports. This initiative, introduced in the first quarter of the year, will continue with the second quarter briefing, which is due in two weeks and will provide detailed insights into NCS operations.
- At the most recent engagement with the Health Federation of Nigeria (HFN), greater cooperation and collaboration were emphasized, particularly to reduce the cost and time for medicament clearance. Stakeholders reached an agreement to set up a technical working group supported by the Ministry of Finance, comprising all relevant agencies involved in the processing of medicaments. They also agreed to develop specific clearance procedures for medicaments and to institutionalize a platform with customs for setting up a special corridor dedicated to the clearance of healthcare products.
