The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Zone ‘A’ Ikeja, Lagos made public its plans to generate about N8 trillion in revenue in 2026.
The Zone’s intentions is coming on the heels of declining cargo volumes which has continued to pose a challenge to revenue collection across in the nation’s seaports and border commands.
The Zonal Coordinator, Assistant Comptroller-General (ACG) Mohammed Babandede stated this in an interaction with the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (MARAN) newspaper editorial team.
He stressed that the zone remains committed to delivering a substantial portion of the Federal Government’s revenue target for the year.
Zone ‘A’ which contributes about 80 per cent of the NCS’s totals revenue, comprises 16 commands including those situated in Apapa, Tin-Can Island, Lekki Deep Sea Port, PTML, Seme and Ogun State.
According to Babandede, the zone was relying on ongoing reforms, automation and technology-driven processes to improve revenue collection while simultaneously making legitimate trade faster and more predictable.
The ACG explained that NCS was increasingly prioritising compliant traders and consignments with properly documented cargo capable of completing the clearance process and leaving Customs control within 48 hours.
He added that the service is also strengthening its one-stop-shop approach to prevent unnecessary interventions after cargo has undergone the required examination and has been formally released.
According to him, the principle was straightforward. Once a consignment has been properly examined and released, it should not be subjected to further stoppages by NCS officers elsewhere in the country. Any intelligence or information requiring further intervention should be acted upon before the cargo is released.
He noted that the approach was designed to eliminate avoidable delays and facilitate legitimate trade across the country.
The ACG also disclosed that the NCS was working towards achieving fully paperless operations by the end of 2026 with key stages of the cargo clearance process, including declaration, examination and release, increasingly moving to electronic platforms.
He said the deployment of technology would also extend to transit cargo with electronic tracking systems being introduced to provide greater visibility over consignments moving through the supply chain.
The ACG warned that the success of NCS trade facilitation efforts would depend largely on the willingness of importers and other stakeholders to comply with established procedures.
He also enjoined importers to ensure that their declarations are accurate, complete and transparent, stressing that technological reforms alone cannot eliminate delays where traders provide inadequate or misleading information.
He maintained that NCS objective was to strike a balance between revenue mobilisation, trade facilitation and border control, particularly at a time when declining cargo volumes were putting additional pressure on government revenue expectations.
