As part of efforts to removes delays that lead to rejection of Nigerian export in the international markets and to boost the nation’s foreign exchange (forex) earnings, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in collaboration with other government agencies and stakeholders have created a one-stop-shop.
According to The Nation, this was made known by the new NCS Area Controller, Lilypond Export Command, Lagos, Ajibola Odusanya, in Apapa. The non-oil exports, according to him, include manufactured and agricultural products, services, solid minerals like tin, coal and columbite. Others are cocoa beans, cashew nuts, rough wood, nitrogenous fertiliser, rubber, and cotton, among others.
Odusanya said the approval given by the Federal Government to export processing terminals has strategically positioned the country to optimise the the benefits in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement. The leadership of the service, he said, had succeeded in eliminating the rejection and return of the nation’s export cargo and has also reduced the cost of doing export business.
The export processing terminals created by the Federal Government, Odusanya said, are one-stop shops where exporters consolidate, test, weigh, and pack their cargoes and, then, go straight into the ports for shipment. The terminals, according to him, are certified as pre-gates for exports where export goods would be sorted, inspected, certified, sealed, and escorted by the officials of the service to the port for shipment into the international market.
“What the service has done is to create an export command. This means there are individuals responsible for export problems that exporters can relate with without going to the port. “This initiative by the leadership of the service is in support of the Federal Government’s commitment to the implementation of the National Action Plan on Agro-Export and its desire to diversify the national economy from oil export to non-oil exports.
The new CAC said the service was responsible for the movement of over 3.5m metric tonnes of export between January and June, this year. Odusanya said the county has been recording growth in export since 2019. In 2019, he said, the ports recorded about 2.8 million metric tonnes of export, and it increased to 3.8 million metric tonnes in 2020. According to him, export volume grew in 2021 to 3.79 million metric tonnes, and over 5.1 million metric tonnes last year.
He said the service is working closely with other government agencies such as the NPA to ensure that imports and exports are cleared out of the port faster. Odusanya said the service will also introduce other initiatives and interventions that would harness the opportunities in the non-oil sector to create wealth for the country.
Confirming the growth in export trade, the former President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANALCA), Prince Olayiwola Shottu said the country had a non-oil export performance of $4.8 billion last year, which, according to him, “is the biggest since the creation of NEPC in 1976.
“The vulnerability of the economy to oil price shocks has been known for years now, and the case for diversification has been made many times without number. Therefore, the development of a robust non-oil export base is, in all likelihood, no longer a policy choice, it is a growth imperative which the Customs and other government agencies like the NPA must support. To grow and develop over the long term, the country needs very rapid growth in non-oil exports through the nation’s sea ports,” Shittu said.
