The Nigeria Customs Service has strengthened its strategic cooperation with His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs as part of efforts to enhance trade facilitation and modernise border management between Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
The development followed a high-level bilateral meeting held in London on March 18, 2026, under the Nigeria–United Kingdom Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership framework, alongside the state visit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, and Ms Megan Shaw, Head of International Customs and Border Engagement at HMRC, led the discussions, which focused on advancing customs modernisation, improving trade data transparency, and expanding operational collaboration between both countries.
Adeniyi said effective customs cooperation is vital for economic growth and sustainable trade, noting that Nigeria and the United Kingdom maintain long-standing commercial ties across sectors such as agriculture, energy, industrial goods, and consumer products.
He stressed that customs agencies play a central role in ensuring that cross-border trade remains secure, transparent, and beneficial to both economies.
Both parties acknowledged discrepancies in bilateral trade data, describing the gap as a structural issue requiring coordinated intervention. Available figures show that while Nigeria recorded imports of about £504 million worth of UK goods in 2024, the United Kingdom reported exports to Nigeria valued at approximately £1.7 billion within the same period.
To address this imbalance, the two countries agreed to explore the introduction of a structured pre-arrival data exchange system between their digital customs platforms. The initiative is expected to improve risk management, enhance data accuracy, and strengthen compliance monitoring.
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The meeting also highlighted ongoing customs modernisation efforts, with the UK showcasing advancements in artificial intelligence-driven trade tools, digital verification systems, and real-time analytics.
Both sides agreed on key measures to deepen cooperation, including the development of a Customs Mutual Administrative Assistance Framework, technical collaboration on capacity building, and the establishment of a joint engagement mechanism under the partnership framework.
The Nigeria Customs Service reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening international partnerships as part of its broader reform agenda aimed at improving efficiency, transparency, and competitiveness in the country’s trade environment.
The agency added that outcomes from the engagement would enhance its operational capacity and support Nigeria’s economic reform objectives under the Renewed Hope programme.
