By George Ozalla
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) will host two major conferences in Abuja in December to strengthen border security, improve trade facilitation and advance economic integration across Africa.
The Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC) Conference is scheduled for December 7 and 8, 2026, while the Customs Partnership for African Cooperation in Trade (C-PACT) 2026 Conference will hold from December 9 to 11.
The CGC Conference, themed “Securing Borders, Enabling Trade: A Customs Commitment to Safer Communities,” will provide an opportunity for the Service to review its modernisation efforts, assess progress on previous commitments and examine the relationship between effective Customs administration, national security and trade facilitation.
C-PACT 2026, with the theme “One Border, Interconnected Systems: Advancing Customs Cooperation through One-Stop Border Posts,” will extend the discussions to the continental level, focusing on coordinated border management, digital connectivity and more efficient movement of goods across African borders.
According to the National Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Deputy Comptroller of Customs Abdullahi Maiwada, PhD, mnipr, mniia, the CGC Conference will bring together government officials, Customs leadership, trade stakeholders and institutional partners to review the Service’s reform programme and examine ways to improve its operations.
The conference will feature discussions on digital Customs systems, trusted trade corridors, seamless payments, intelligence-led enforcement and partnerships for safer communities.
It will also review commitments made in 2025 and results recorded in 2026, alongside presentations on Customs modernisation, the presentation of Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) certificates and discussions on measuring the impact of reforms on trade and revenue.
A major focus will be how digital transformation and stakeholder partnerships can improve Customs operations and make legitimate trade easier.
Stakeholders expected to participate in these discussions include AEO beneficiaries, the National Single Window Secretariat, the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), representatives of the excise sector and other relevant institutions. They will examine the outcomes of ongoing reforms and identify areas requiring further improvement.
The second day of the CGC Conference will focus on coordinated responses to emerging border threats. Relevant security and enforcement institutions, including the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), the NCS, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), will participate in discussions on intelligence sharing, inter-agency cooperation and border security.
The C-PACT 2026 Conference will bring together Customs administrations, policymakers, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, Regional Economic Communities, border management agencies, development partners, technology providers and private-sector operators.
Participants will examine challenges that continue to hinder cross-border trade in Africa, including fragmented procedures, duplicated controls, limited information exchange, incompatible digital systems and poor coordination among border agencies.
The conference will explore how One-Stop Border Posts (OSBPs), supported by interconnected Customs platforms, coordinated risk management, harmonised procedures and secure information exchange, can reduce delays and trade costs while making the movement of goods across African trade corridors more predictable.
Its programme will include high-level policy discussions, technical sessions on connected borders, presentations on operational experiences from existing and emerging One-Stop Border Posts, technology demonstrations and discussions on public-private partnerships for financing and developing modern border infrastructure.
Participants will also consider practical ways to implement key AfCFTA initiatives, including the AfCFTA Integrated Transit System, the Single Bond Guarantee Scheme and the Electronic Certificate of Origin system.
The organisers expect the conference to produce practical recommendations, identify priority areas for technology deployment and investment, strengthen institutional partnerships and develop a roadmap for interconnected, digitally enabled border systems across Africa.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, and the Service’s management have reiterated their commitment to working with national institutions, regional partners and international stakeholders to secure borders, facilitate legitimate trade and support Africa’s economic integration.
The conferences are intended to bring Customs administrations, government institutions and trade stakeholders together to find practical solutions to border security challenges, reduce delays in cross-border trade and strengthen cooperation among African countries.
