The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the American Business Council (ABC) have agreed to deepen collaboration aimed at strengthening trade ties between Nigeria and the United States while tackling operational challenges affecting American businesses in the country.
The agreement emerged from a joint quarterly engagement held at the Customs Headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, where both sides explored measures to improve border security, accelerate cargo clearance processes and enhance the overall trading environment for investors.
Comptroller-General of Customs, Dr. Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, said sustained engagement between the public and private sectors remains critical to driving economic reforms and improving the efficiency of Nigeria’s trade ecosystem.
He announced plans to institutionalise the consultative forum as a permanent feature of the Customs Service’s operational calendar, underscoring the agency’s commitment to regular dialogue with key stakeholders.
“It is our intention to institutionalise this as a permanent feature of the Customs calendar because of the importance we attach to this kind of engagement,” Adeniyi said.
The Customs chief also outlined a series of reforms designed to modernise trade processes, improve transparency and reduce delays at the nation’s ports.
These include the rollout of the Advance Ruling system, the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) programme, the Post-Clearance Audit framework, the newly launched B’Odogwu digital platform and the continued deployment of modern cargo scanning technology.
According to Adeniyi, the initiatives are part of a broader strategy to enhance trade facilitation, strengthen compliance and create a more predictable business environment for local and foreign investors.
President of the American Business Council, Nneka Enwereji, described the discussions as highly productive, praising the Customs Service for its efforts to improve the ease of doing business and modernise trade operations.
“This session has been phenomenal and demonstrates your commitment to improving ease of doing business,” she said. “You have raised the bar, and there is a lot that can be learned from this.”