Port clearance hurdles:Customs CG held session with Stakeholders.

The Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR, held a roundtable collaborative session with maritime and excise stakeholders to design a lasting remedy to issues facing clearance processes in ports across the country.

The meeting, which was held in Lagos on Friday, 15th December 2023, was part of activities for the just concluded CGC’s Conference, 2023.

It was attended by senior serving and retired Customs Officers, Terminal Operators, Freight Forwarders, Licensed Customs Agents, and Representatives of Excise Stakeholders, among others, to create a platform for interaction and pinpoint the way forward to better Customs operations.

CGC Adewale Adeniyi clarified that concerns such as multiple alerts, frequent downtime of CPC, numerous checkpoints, and difficulty accessing ports, among others, have been established in previous meetings as the next phase is to set time-bound solutions.

In his words, “Issues have been openly discussed. The main ones facing cargo clearance will be addressed by collaborating with key stakeholders on building a framework for the way forward to these outlined hurdles.”

“There will be a commitment to the creation and implementation of new policies that are in line with decisions that are taken today, and these approaches will be timebound to ensure we achieve the wanted objective soon,” he said.

A panel was set up comprising representatives of stakeholders and the Nigeria Customs Service to address the concerns impeding effective port operations and achieve cumulative suggestions, which will be carried out by 1st quarter of 2024.

One of the Panelists,Comptroller Dera Nnadi, encouraged port users and stakeholders to improve weekend operations; he also encouraged the use of barge without making it a commercial process.

Stakeholders appreciated the CGC for bringing back the Services’ Annual Conference while indicating readiness to always work with Customs.

The President of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Chief Tochukwu Ezisi, said, for the first time in years, freight forwarders are happy because “our issues are being discussed and decisions are taken immediately.”

“CGC Adewale has shown seriousness in achieving his three-point agenda by bringing back this Conference, which is an avenue to listen to stakeholders, and we are ready to always work with the Service.” He added.

The Deputy President of the National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA),Alhaji Kazeem Isa Adua,in his contribution stated, “The CGC has done well in organizing this Conference and with the positive body language seen today. We should expect smooth and optimized clearance process soon”.