Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Tin-Can Island Port Command, said on Wednesday that only about 30 percent of the total importers bringing goods through Nigerian seaports comply with international trade guidelines.
By implication, the remaining 70 percent do not comply with rules and regulations guiding international trade in Nigeria, with the intention of short-changing the Federal Government of the revenue that ought to have accrued from import duty collection.
Musa Baba Abdullahi, Customs area comptroller of Tin-Can Customs Command, who disclosed this to members of the Shipping Correspondent Association of Nigeria (SCAN) during a courtesy visit to his office on Wednesday, said it was mostly blue chip and manufacturing companies that comply with the trade rules.
Abdullahi, who said compliance to trade rules was very imperative to facilitation of trade by Customs, also noted that Customs created a clearing window known as ‘Fast Track Lane,’ which allows importers with good track record to clear their consignments without delay.
“We really need to let traders know that there are rewards for compliance. The rewards for compliance include faster, cheaper and quicker turnaround. These complaint companies are placed on the Fast Track examination process, where their cargoes are taken to their warehouse for physical examination take place,” Abdullahi said.
According to Abdullahi, when traders comply with trade rules, there would not be any issue at the ports, but when we have traders who do not comply, it becomes impossible to enjoy the benefits of trade facilitation.
He further disclosed that most Customs systems operate on risk management based, which means that the system supposed to run on their own, but because people do not comply, it becomes practically impossible to have this systems run on their own.
Speaking on Ease of Doing Business at the port, he said it depends on three things that include procedure, infrastructure and logistics. “Customs has tried to perfect its procedure with the introduction of the Nigeria Customs Integration System (NICIS 11) but the state of infrastructure around the port is beyond Customs.
“For example, what has Customs got to do with lightening of the ports at nights? We do 24hours operations at the ports, but when infrastructures that are supposed to be in place at the ports are not there, there is nothing Customs can do to facilitate trade.”
He further said Customs management anticipated that some companies enjoying the Fast Track examination could be tempted to abuse it, and that was why the service did not hesitate to remove such companies from the Fast Track when they erred.
