Nigeria has achieved its first major shipment to Kenya as Lucky Fibers, a subsidiary of the Tolaram Group, became one of the first companies to ship goods to Kenya under the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) initiative.
During a visit to the Apapa Area Command to ensure proper documentation and verification of the shipment, Senior Trade Expert and Lead of Trade Enablement at the Nigeria AfCFTA Coordination Office, Olusegun Olutayo, noted that the shipment from Nigeria to Kenya, specifically to the port of Mombasa, demonstrates the collaborative spirit of AfCFTA.
“It is not that we are doing it alone; I have already sent a message to the Secretariat in Ghana that there will be a shipment under AfCFTA to Kenya. I have also communicated with the AfCFTA implementation committee in Kenya. So this is the spirit we are building to ensure that we increase intra-African trade,” Olutayo stated.
He stressed the critical role of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) as the Designated Competent Authority (DCA) under the AfCFTA in leveraging its expertise to ensure seamless trade.
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Also in a statement by the National Public Relations Officer (NPRO), Abdullahi Maiwada, said: “The Nigeria Customs Service has been fantastic in its readiness to facilitate trade. Once there is an issue, particularly around the AfCFTA, everybody shows readiness to support and facilitate it, which is the essence of true trade facilitation.”
On his part, Assistant Comptroller Olusola Salako, the releasing officer for Lilypond Export Command at Apapa Area Command, highlighted the Nigeria Customs Service’s efforts to leverage technology in ensuring that AfCFTA succeeds in Africa.
“The service has aligned with the mandates of the World Customs Organisation to prioritize the importance of trade. Gone are the days when we experienced issues. Today, we have a Unified Customs Management System (UCMS). With trade becoming more global, we went back to the drawing board and improved our technology, which will help us facilitate trade.
“The service is already in top gear; officers have been trained, and we have dedicated officers, senior officers, and releasing officers for this particular export procedure-not limited to AfCFTA alone-and we also have dedicated ports,” Salako said.
