By Bon Peters
PORT HARCOURT/Nigeria: In a major step toward transforming Nigeria’s trade environment, the National Single Window (NSW) Project Secretariat, in collaboration with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), on Thursday held a stakeholders’ sensitization programme for players in the maritime and logistics sector of the Eastern Zone.
The sensitization, which took place at the Banquet Hall of Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt, brought together critical stakeholders in the nation’s import and export value chain, including representatives of regulatory agencies, freight forwarders, shippers, terminal operators, and industry associations.
The National Single Window Project, launched by the Federal Government on April 16, 2024, is a strategic reform initiative under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda aimed at positioning Nigeria to achieve a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
The project seeks to eliminate the long-standing bureaucratic bottlenecks that have plagued import and export processes, harmonizing all trade-related procedures into a single digital platform. This platform will connect all government revenue agencies, importers, exporters, and other regulators to enhance transparency, efficiency, and ease of doing business.
Speaking at the event, the Team Lead and Head of the National Single Window Project Secretariat, Mr. Tola Fakolade, commended the Nigeria Customs Service, Central Bank of Nigeria, and other partners for their leadership in driving trade digitization.
He said the National Single Window is designed to harmonize digital operations across all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), thereby creating a unified process that promotes transparency, reduces transaction costs, and minimizes person-to-person contact in trade facilitation.
“Everybody here is important in trade facilitation,” Fakolade said. “This project will drastically cut down bureaucratic bottlenecks, ensure predictability, and guarantee transparency in the trade system. It is a critical step toward making Nigeria a global business destination.”
He added that the Federal Government is fully committed to deploying the system, noting that implementation would take place in four stages, each with key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress.
Representing the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, the Zonal Coordinator, Zone C Headquarters, Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs, Kamal Mohammed, described the initiative as “a defining moment for trade facilitation in Nigeria.”
He emphasized that no single agency can achieve trade reform in isolation, calling for the collaboration of all stakeholders to ensure the project’s success.
“With the National Single Window, clearance procedures and documentation will be faster and more efficient,” he said. “This will reduce trade costs and improve Nigeria’s global competitiveness. Collective purpose is the watchword.”
Delivering the keynote address, the Registrar of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), Mr. Kingsley Igwe, highlighted the numerous benefits of the Single Window system, urging stakeholders to embrace it as a “one-stop shop” for all trade-related transactions.
He said the innovation would position Nigeria among leading economies using digital trade systems to facilitate borderless commerce.
The session also featured an interactive engagement moderated by the National Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Customs Service, Assistant Comptroller Aliyu Maiwada, alongside other Customs PROs from Zone C.
Stakeholders in attendance unanimously applauded the Federal Government’s initiative, pledging their support for its full implementation and the training programmes to be rolled out before the system’s launch in 2026.
Those present included senior Customs Area Comptrollers from Zone C, Comptroller Mukhtar Muazu of the Tariff and Trade Department, Deputy Comptroller Aondona Fanyan of ICT Modernization, and representatives of the Nigeria Shippers Council, ANLCA, NAGAFF, APFFLON, AREFFN, bonded terminal operators, terminal managers, farmers, and captains of industry.
Stakeholders described the National Single Window as a transformative policy capable of unlocking Nigeria’s trade potential, boosting government revenue, and positioning the country as a competitive hub in global trade.
