NCS and China Customs Sign MOU to Strengthen the Nation's Import-Export Trade

Kathy Kyari

In order to promote bilateral relations and boost economic growth, the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (GACC) and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC) Adewale Adeniyi led a delegation of his management team to Shenzhen on Wednesday, May 8, 2024. There, he emphasized the importance of forging a bilateral affiliation with China, arguing that doing so will strengthen the two nations' import-export trade and benefit Nigerian MSMEs.

The People's Republic of China's Vice Minister of the General Administration of Customs, Wang Lingjun, was thanked by the CGC for his willingness in signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the NCS. He also praised the recent exponential growth in e-commerce development.

“We know a lot of Nigerian companies and SMEs take advantage of the opportunities aided through e-commerce.”

Reiterating that the relationship will create a cooperative mechanism for NCS and the GACC to collaborate on supply chain security standards and enhance the economic stability of both nations, CGC Adeniyi expressed optimism that the NCS-GACC Memorandum of Understanding will serve as a critical component of cooperative security and trade relationships between the two nation's Customs agencies.

“These are some of the many reasons why Nigeria Customs Service pays attention to what is happening in China. As you have said, China is making the biggest trade in Nigeria, and the basic context of International Trade is 'your export is our import'. I appreciate the numbers that you gain in Nigeria. But it is also common knowledge that those numbers sometimes must take account of the large volume of informal trade that exists between us.” CGC Adeniyi said.

Vice Minister Sun Yuning's representative, Mr. Wang Lingjun of the General Administration of Customs, signed the Memorandum of Understanding on behalf of the People's Republic of China.

Mr. Lingjun expressed satisfaction with CGC Adeniyi's vision that the partnership between the two agencies will act as a vehicle for generating opportunities for mutual benefit on a wide range of economic issues and trade facilitation between Nigeria and China.