The Nigeria Customs Service ( NCS) has said it is intensifying efforts on trade modernization so as to enhance trade facilitation, efficiency and revenue generation.
This is as the NCS said it is working towards deploying a Unified Customs Management system geared towards seamless transactions by importers.
The National Public Relations Officer, Abdullahi Maiwada, a Chief Superintendent of Customs, stated this yesterday, in an interview with journalists, after a media tour of the Trade Modernization office, in Abuja.
Maiwada noted that the ongoing modernization project is an effort of the Comptroller-General of Customs ( CGC), to consolidate on the past gains of the service, in the discharge of its statutory duties..
According to him, “This is an effort of the comptroller-general of customs to consolidate on the previous gains.
“This project started some years ago, and we need to update members of the press and public, and generally our stakeholders on what we are doing so far in trade facilitation which is the core and at the centre of what we are doing. The benefit of Trade Modernization Project, let me be more specific with you, is in terms of trade facilitation, efficiency in customs delivery, and in terms of revenue generation. That is the essence of modernization. Automation of our processes and procedures is part of our efforts to make sure that we facilitate trade, we effectively collect revenue for Nigeria.”
On his part, the Head, Business Analysis Unit, in the project, Usman Abba, during the media tour, told journalists that the Unified Customs Management system, when deployed will enhance trade, transparency, as well as decongest the ports.
Abba explained that the System, which is a revenue cluster under the Customs Modernisation Project will also serve as the clearance system of the NCS. He added that it will enable importers to track their goods from the beginning of transaction to the point of clearance and delivery.
The General Manager, Trade Modernization Project Limited ( TMP), which is the concessionaire for the project, Ahmed Ogunshola, told journalists that the project, when completed would give the NCS a pride of place, among its peers, globally.
Ogunshola explained that “this is a 20-year project that commenced in 2022. We are currently in phase one, and we would move to phase two and three at the appropriate time. We have made significant deliverables with the project.
“We will jointly deploy a customs management system for the NCS in addition to other areas we have already mentioned. We are not just jointly designing these solutions but jointly deploying these solutions so there is a 100 percent knowledge transfer in what we are doing.
“Phase One of the project covers years one to six, phase two covers years seven to 13, phase three is year 14 to year 20.
“Phase one is that all systems must be deployed, hardware, software, technological services. Phase two we continue to manage. In phase three, we also do that but the significance is that TMP will take a back seat and customs officers will now be the ones doing the work.”
