Nigeria and Benin Customs Systems Integration to Cut Delays

Nigeria and Benin Republic are collaborating to integrate their Customs systems to minimize delays at the Sèmè-Kraké border, facilitating quicker movement of legitimate goods and travelers. The initiative, disclosed by Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, involves a proposed real-time data exchange that will allow both Customs administrations to share declarations, manifests, transit information, risk profiles, and enforcement alerts.

Currently, both administrations operate under the same roof but lack an integrated platform for real-time information exchange. The proposed system aims to make declarations lodged on one side visible to the other in real time and track transit consignments from origin to destination.

Adeniyi emphasized the significance of the Sèmè-Kraké crossing as a critical trade gateway on the Abidjan-Lagos Corridor, which handles about 70% of the sub-region’s transit trade. He noted that delays at the border affect thousands of consignments and travelers, ultimately impacting market prices across the region.