The federal government’s import duty exemption scheme seems to be significantly impacting available revenue to the country as official figures of the Nigeria Customs Service show that the nation lost N1.68 trillion to the concessions granted to support various sectors of the economy in 2024 alone.
This is as the Customs Service says it collected a total sum of N6.1 trillion revenue in the same year-end 2024, surpassing its target of N5.079 trillion by N1.026 trillion, representing a 20.2 per cent increase above the target. The N6.1 trillion revenue achievement represents a significant 90.4 per cent increase from our 2023 collection of N3,206,583,002,675.65
Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Adewale Adeniyi sees the N1.68 trillion lost to concessions as a drain on the funds that ought to be available to for the funding of government expenses, saying that government should find a way to reduce the amount to the granted or reduce the number of beneficiaries, Adeniyi said
He said the system should be automated from end to end to bring together all the stakeholders, including the Customs and Ministry of Finance. “I will want a system where Customs is consulted, carried along in the process so that we would have a say… I would advocate more involvement of Customs,” he stated. He added that the government should establish a monitoring mechanism to ascertain the impact of the concessions on the citizenry and the economy.
The concessions granted in 2024 comprised N723,000,081,776.68 in import duty waivers, N372.65 billion in other levy concessions, and N586.65 billion in import VAT relief. The concessions were granted to stimulate economic growth, support industrial development, and enhance the overall business environment in line with government policy objectives. However, the 2024 concession value represents a significant reduction from the N3.959 trillion recorded in 2023.
Addressing a media conference at the headquarters of the service on Tuesday, the CGC said the revenue growth “is historic as it marks the highest Year-on-Year increase recorded by the Service in recent times, surpassing the 52.24 per cent growth recorded in 2022 by 38.18 percentage points. Additionally, the Service achieved another milestone in October 2024 by recording the highest monthly collection ever of N603,171,859,991.97.”
Adeniyi said the sum of N3,657,063,981,445.42 was collected into the federation account, consisting of import duty, excise duty, fees, e-auction proceeds, and CET levy. Also, non-federation account levies account for a total of N816,902,844,844.73, with N1,631,348,717,199.35 of the total figure coming in from Value Added Tax (VAT) on imports.
Under its trade facilitation mandate, the CGC said the service processed imports with a Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) value of N60.29 trillion in 2024, representing a remarkable 117.4 per cent increase from N27.74 trillion in 2023.
That was achieved through 1,262,988 import transactions, handling a total mass of 15.35 billion kilograms. The higher value recorded despite an 8.2 per cent decrease in transaction volume from the previous year’s 1,376,514 transactions indicates a shift towards higher-value goods in our import trade portfolio.
The total trade value handled by the Service in 2024 amounted to 196.94 trillion, compared to N70.50trn in 2023, representing a 179.3 per cent increase.
“Our export trade performance was equally impressive, with the total CIF value rising significantly to N136.65 trillion in 2024 from N42.77 trillion in 2023, marking a 219.5 per cent increase. While the number of export transactions remained relatively stable at 38,199 compared to 38,294 in 2023, we witnessed a substantial increase in export volume, processing 12.35 billion kilograms in 2024 compared to 3.70 billion kilograms in 2023,” he said yesterday.
CGC Adeniyi said the NCS adapted its strategies to the evolving security challenges at the boarders, resulting in the 3,555 seizures throughout the year, with a dramatic 100.92% increase in the Duty Paid Value (DPV) of seizures from ₦17.56 billion in 2023 to ₦35.29 billion in 2024.
He said the seizures, with a Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) value of ₦28.46 billion and total duty of ₦6.83 billion, highlights the scale of attempted economic sabotage prevented by the service. According to him, the recorded seizures included traditional and emerging risks to Nigeria’s economic and overall national Security.
“Particularly noteworthy were the seizures of arms and ammunition, including 900 arms and 113,472 rounds of ammunition and the interception of narcotics and other illicit drugs, resulting in 105 seizures across various forms that was aided by the declaration of a state of emergency at our major entry points. The Service also intercepted unauthorized pharmaceutical products, with 40 seizures including 175,676 pieces and 6,271 cartons of various medicaments valued at ₦3.04 billion, protecting public health from potentially dangerous counterfeit drugs.
“The Service’s enforcement activities also revealed evolving patterns in environmental and wildlife crimes, with 76 seizures of animal/wildlife products valued at ₦5.93 billion. We also maintained vigilance over trade-sensitive goods, as evidenced by the seizure of 183,527 bags of rice.
“Significant seizures were made of other restricted items including 3,785 bales of textiles valued at ₦945.9 million, and various quantities of footwear, beverages, and other consumer goods, protecting local industries and supporting the government’s economic diversification agenda. The Service also recorded 397 seizures of vehicles valued at ₦5.64 billion, as we continue to enforce import regulations and protect government revenue,” he stated.
Mark Itsibor
Mark Itsibor is a journalist and communication specialist with 10 years of experience, He is currently Chief Correspondent at LEADERSHIP Media Group and writes on Finance, Economy, Politics, Crime, and Judiciary.
He has a B.Sc in Political Science, Post Graduate Diploma in Journalism (Print), and B.A in Development Communication.
His Twitter handle is @Itsibor_M