Customs Signs $3.2 Billion Digital Agreement, FG Aims For $176 Billion In Income

On Monday, the Nigeria Customs Service and a consortium called Trade Modernisation Project Limited signed a $3.2 billion concession agreement to digitalize the border security and revenue collection agency’s operations.

This comes as the federal government anticipates the transaction to generate over $176 billion in revenue.

Representatives of the technical and financial partners in the deal, including African Finance Corporation and Huawei Technologies Company Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of China-based Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd, were present at the agreement-signing ceremony held at the NCS’ Abuja national headquarters.

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After the documents were signed, the Controller-General of the National Civil Service, Col. Hameed Ali (retd.), claimed that Nigeria was creating a precedent that other African governments were eager to follow.

Ali partly said, “The journey has been long and tortuous, but we thank God that today we have signed the dotted lines. Today, we are happy to say that in Nigeria, we are going to be fully electronic, digitised and modernised. The success of this project will put Nigeria on the map.

“This project is very important in the sense that it has so many benefits that are lined up. The first benefit, which is tangible, is the fact that we are going to garner for this country, $3.5bn.

“To the Nigeria Customs, this is going to change the entire business process. It is going to put the Customs on the best part in terms of doing the business.

“It would remove all arbitrariness and human mistakes. It is a process that would ease the cost of doing business. It is a process that would also assist those of us who were given the task to manage with a simpler process of managing and monitoring.

The CG added, “Let me also underscore the fact that this problem, having come this far, is a project that we must support in its entirety. There are rumours that this project is going to weed away officers. Let me allay that fear.

“We are even in need of officers. We have only 15,000 (of them) and by the mission and vision of the management, we will need nothing less than 30,000 people to be able to effectively and efficiently carry out the mandate given to us. So, there is no question of weeding (out) anybody.

The Chairman, Trade Modernisation Project Limited, Saleh Ahmadu, who described the event as a “momentous occasion,” noted that the deal was a public-private partnership arrangement in line with the ICRC guidelines.

Ahmadu added, “The $3.2bin investments required for the project is already being finalised through an AFC led initiative. As the concession period begins, we wish to assure Nigerians that the revenue target of $176 billion for the Federal Government will be achieved, if not surpassed.

Michael Ohiani, Acting Director-General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, stated that the Commission’s mandate under the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission Act, 2005 is to regulate all PPPs.

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