President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has commended the recognition of Nigeria’s Customs modernisation model by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), following the selection of a subsidiary of Nigerian-owned Bergmans Security Consultant and Supplies Limited to implement a 20-year, multi-billion-dollar continental Customs Modernisation Project.
The President’s commendation was contained in a State House statement issued on Monday, August 10, 2026, by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The selected company, AfriTrade CMP Limited, is expected to deploy digital and physical infrastructure aimed at improving customs processes, cargo tracking, border management and trade-data exchange across participating African countries.
Tinubu said the development validates Nigeria’s growing capacity to develop homegrown solutions capable of serving the wider African market.
He noted that another subsidiary of Bergmans, Trade Modernisation Project Limited, is already implementing Nigeria’s Customs modernisation programme through the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), describing the development as evidence of the depth of Nigerian expertise in customs administration and trade infrastructure.
The President said solutions developed and tested in Nigeria were increasingly providing a model for other African countries.
“What has been built and tested in Nigeria is now providing a model for the continent. This is how African integration should work: Africans building African solutions for African market,” Tinubu said.
He added that under his administration’s Nigeria First policy, the government would continue creating opportunities for capable Nigerian businesses to compete within Nigeria, across Africa and globally.
Tinubu commended Bergmans, AfriTrade CMP Limited, Trade Modernisation Project Limited, the Nigeria Customs Service, Comptroller-General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi and Nigerian professionals involved in the modernisation programme.
The President also linked the continental recognition to ongoing reforms within the Nigeria Customs Service under Adeniyi, stressing the importance of sustained investment in digital transformation, institutional capacity and indigenous expertise.
The development received further recognition during a visit by AfCFTA Secretary-General, Wamkele Mene, to the NCS headquarters in Abuja, where he inspected the Trade Modernisation Project in operation.
Mene, who visited alongside members of the Senate Committee on Customs led by Senator Jibrin Isah, described B’Odogwu, Nigeria’s indigenous Unified Customs Management System, as a model with potential for wider adoption across Africa.
He disclosed that non-African companies had offered similar solutions but said AfCFTA had opted for an African-developed solution, underscoring the importance of African expertise and innovation in building the continent’s trade architecture.
Senator Isah also expressed the committee’s support for the modernisation programme after witnessing the systems in operation.
B’Odogwu, first piloted in October 2024, forms a central part of Nigeria’s Customs modernisation programme, supporting the digitalisation of customs processes, cargo tracking, data management, surveillance, risk management and non-intrusive inspection.
The modernisation programme is also being integrated with the National Single Window, launched in March 2026 as a digital gateway for cross-border trade processes.
The Federal Government said the growing adoption and recognition of Nigeria-developed customs technology represents an opportunity for Nigerian institutions and businesses to play a greater role in strengthening Africa’s single market and making intra-African trade more efficient and competitive.
