The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), in collaboration with the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), has launched a results-driven reform agenda aimed at improving operational efficiency and strengthening Nigeria’s trade competitiveness through more efficient port operations.
The initiative was unveiled on Tuesday, April 7, 2026, at the opening of a three-day operational workshop in Apapa, themed: “Customs Leadership in Port Efficiency, Inspection Reform and Clearance Timeline.”
Speaking at the event, the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, outlined a five-pillar strategy focused on:
• Joint inspections
• Risk-based cargo clearance
• Optimisation of scanning infrastructure
• Enforcement of service timelines
• Strengthened inter-agency coordination
Adeniyi said the focus has now shifted from policy formulation to effective implementation.
“This workshop is about closing the distance between knowing and doing. The Service must now focus on translating established best practices into consistent operational outcomes,” he stated.
He further emphasised the Service’s transition to intelligence-led cargo processing, stressing that investments in digital platforms and scanning systems must result in faster, more transparent cargo clearance for traders.
To ensure accountability, the CGC disclosed that the workshop would produce a reform execution matrix that would be actively monitored, adding that he would personally track progress reports.
“The reform implementation matrix will not end up in a filing cabinet. It will be actively monitored, and I will personally follow the progress reports. The professionalism, commitment, and integrity that this workshop asks of are qualities you need to acquire. I am therefore asking you to deploy them consistently, not selectively,” Adeniyi said.
In her remarks, the Director-General of PEBEC, Zahrah Mustapha-Audu, highlighted the need for risk-based and data-driven inspection systems to enhance efficiency and reduce the cost of doing business in Nigeria.
“We must move from inspecting everything to inspecting the right thing,” she said, noting that efficient and transparent border processes are essential to lowering business costs and improving Nigeria’s trade position.
Earlier, the Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of Tariff and Trade, Caroline Niagwan, said the Nigeria Customs Service’s evolving mandate places it at the centre of trade facilitation and national economic growth.
She added that operational efficiency must be reflected consistently across all Customs commands nationwide.
Meanwhile, the CGC and the PEBEC delegation also visited the National Single Window facility, where they met with the Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, and other stakeholders to assess ongoing progress and address operational gaps.
