By George Ozalla
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the United Kingdom’s His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs have strengthened cooperation on trade facilitation and digital border management, following a high-level bilateral meeting held in London on March 18, 2026.
The meeting was held under the Nigeria–United Kingdom Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership on the sidelines of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s state visit to the United Kingdom.
According to a press statement signed by the National Public Relations Officer of the Service, Abdullahi Maiwada, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, and the Head of International Customs and Border Engagement at HMRC, Megan Shaw, led the engagement.
Talks centred on customs modernisation, improving transparency in trade data, and expanding operational cooperation between both sides to improve efficiency across the Nigeria–United Kingdom trade corridor.
Adeniyi said customs cooperation remains important to economic growth and trade, noting that both countries maintain active exchange in industrial goods, agriculture, energy, and consumer products. He added that customs authorities play a frontline role in ensuring that trade flows are secure and transparent.
Both sides pointed to gaps in bilateral trade data as an issue requiring joint attention. Figures show that while about £504 million in UK-origin goods were recorded as imports into Nigeria in 2024, the United Kingdom reported exports to Nigeria at about £1.7 billion within the same period.
To address this, the two administrations agreed to explore a pre-arrival data exchange framework between their digital platforms to strengthen risk management, improve data reconciliation, and support compliance monitoring.
The meeting also reviewed ongoing customs modernisation efforts, including the United Kingdom’s use of artificial intelligence tools, digital verification systems, and real-time analytics.
Outcomes from the engagement include plans to develop a Customs Mutual Administrative Assistance Framework, begin technical scoping for capacity building and knowledge exchange, and set up a joint technical engagement mechanism under the partnership.
The Nigeria Customs Service said the engagement would support its ongoing reforms aimed at improving operations, facilitating trade, and strengthening Nigeria’s trading environment.
