The director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has called on the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to enhance its risk management practices in trade operations to ensure smoother and more efficient cross-border trade.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala made this call in her virtual address at the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC) conference on Wednesday. The conference, which was attended by key stakeholders in Nigeria’s trade and customs sectors, focused on improving the efficiency of customs operations and addressing the challenges of trade facilitation.
She defined risk management, as the systematic process of identifying, assessing, and managing potential risks to ensure the secure and efficient flow of goods across borders. She emphasised that effective risk management not only enhances security but also boosts compliance with trade regulations, accelerates trade processing, and allows customs agencies to better allocate resources by concentrating efforts on high-risk areas. This approach, she said, would significantly reduce delays and facilitate legitimate trade.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala noted a significant discrepancy in the risk management strategies employed in Nigeria as compared to developed economies. In many developed countries, less than one percent of consignments are selected for physical inspection. However, in Nigeria, around 90 per cent of consignments are subjected to physical inspection, with an additional nine percent undergoing scanning. She stressed that without improvements in risk management and a reduction in the inspection rate, meaningful progress in speeding up clearance procedures would be impossible.
“Better risk management must be aligned with better compliance, timely feedback from inspections, and reduced discretion on the part of officials,” Dr. Okonjo-Iweala stated. She underscored the importance of predictability and consistency in the application of customs rules and regulations, highlighting the need for effective sanctions to ensure compliance.
The WTO chief also pointed out the importance of better risk management and information sharing in addressing delays at borders. She encouraged NCS personnel to discharge their duties with greater diligence and professionalism, noting that the predictability of tariffs and other trade measures continues to be limited due to frequent adjustments in fiscal policies and tariffs.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala further stressed that ambitious reforms were essential for strengthening Nigeria’s trade sector. She called for building coalitions of support to drive these reforms forward, with the goal of improving trade operations in Nigeria.
“The task at hand is to enhance Nigeria’s participation in global trade through more effective customs operations. This requires reforms that improve both the efficiency and the predictability of the trade environment,” she added.
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