Customs Collaborates with DG TAXUD, EU For Efficient Export Monitoring

By Ruth Sunday

The Nigeria Customs Service (NC) has partnered with the Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union (DG TAXUD) of the European Union (EU) for efficient export monitoring and trade facilitation.

The Comptroller General of Customs Service (CGS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi who made this public during a meeting at the Corporate Headquarters of NCS on February 27, 2024, noted that the service is
the competent authority for rules of origin and assured that the Service will do all it can to facilitate the process, pointing out that peace will prevail if trade is permitted to flourish.

The CG however acknowledged the initiative as a welcome idea working towards economic union by bringing the two economic blocks together , saying, “the initiative of the Registered Exporters is a welcome development”.

The CGC requested for a framework between Customs and DG TAXUD that could be used to verify and validate export commodities.

He stated the service is interested in a digital platform that will enhance the validation of documents.

According to the Comptroller General, “As part of our outreach program, we are also working with other agencies of the Nigerian government so that we maximize these opportunities. In the past, we’ve had goods from Nigeria returned because of quality, storage, and all of that”.

He said, “We’ve moved to establish a ‘one-stop-shop’ export seat for export documentation so that it will help us reduce the time taken for Nigerian exporters to get their goods out of our port.

Earlier this month, he continued, “we launched the Time Release Studies, which we are targeting towards importing of goods and how much it takes for businessmen to clear their goods in the port”.

He further said, “We are also going to launch a similar exercise to have a scientific measure of how long and how much it costs our businessmen to export their products. The most important part is to identify if there are bureaucratic modules, procedures, or laws that are creating delays so that people can get their things off our port with speed”.

The CGC said, “My intention for us is to have a system that is better, faster, and easier for us to confirm your request within a very short period. I want us to talk about exportation like we all talk about importation”.