• Sat. Feb 8th, 2025

Nigeria Customs Service Enhances Expertise With EU-WCO, GIZ Collaboration In Customs Laboratories


The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is scaling up its capabilities with a strategic collaboration with the EU-WCO Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, GIZ, and other partners in the implementation of customs laboratories and Harmonized System (HS) coding.

Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR, highlighted the importance of these initiatives during the commencement of a five-day training program for specific officers at the Nigeria Customs Command and Staff College Gwagwalada, Abuja.

In his address, CG Adeniyi emphasized the necessity for NCS to establish its laboratory to determine goods’ preferential conditions, duties, and authenticity. He acknowledged the collaboration with EU-WCO and GIZ in realizing this vision, positioning NCS to thrive in global trade, the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement, and other crucial areas.

Assistant Comptroller General Malata Yusuf, representing the CG, urged participants to actively engage in knowledge acquisition during the workshop, which is divided into three phases: intermediary, advanced training, and training for trainers.

Assistant Comptroller General HJ Swomen, overseeing the Excise Free Trade Zone and Industrial Incentive Department, expressed NCS’s commitment to building laboratories, seeking support from the World Customs Organization (WCO). He underlined the opportunity for officers to learn from experts, laying the groundwork for the establishment of NCS labs.

Expert Alvaro Fernandez from the Spanish customs administration, leading the scoping mission for customs labs in Nigeria, explained that the labs would help NCS collect customs duties accurately and enhance security by identifying potentially harmful imported goods.

Assistant Comptroller of Customs Abubakar Nafiu, a committee member of the Customs Laboratories Initiative, revealed that the absence of laboratories has led to significant revenue losses. He outlined the workshop’s goals, focusing on revenue generation, HS code development, and improved security.

Expert trainer Konneh Gasper from the Cameroon Customs Administration emphasized the importance of HS codes, describing them as the international language for classifying and codifying commodities. He highlighted their role in collecting duties, facilitating trade, gathering data on international trade, and monitoring sensitive goods.

Representative of the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation (GATF) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Ms. Seno Usendia, encouraged participants to collectively build the expertise necessary for the successful application of Harmonized Systems Codes.

This collaborative effort positions NCS to enhance its operational efficiency, data management, and revenue collection in line with global best practices.

Hyacinth Beluchukwu Nwafor

Hyacinth Beluchukwu Nwafor is a seasoned journalist and the CEO/Founder Belch Digital Communications, publishers of Hybrid News Nigeria.

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