On Friday, 14 November 2025, Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Dr. Bashir Adewale Adeniyi addressed journalists at the State House, Abuja, unveiling Nigeria’s bold agenda for continental trade integration ahead of the inaugural Customs Partnership for African Cooperation in Trade (C-PACT) Conference, scheduled for 17–19 November.
Adeniyi revealed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent extension of his mandate comes with clear deliverables which include accelerating trade facilitation, decongesting ports, and modernizing cross-border systems.
He emphasized that the President’s vision positions trade as a catalyst for economic growth and poverty alleviation, with AfCFTA implementation now a core priority.
According to the Customs boss, Mr President has made it very clear that he intends to use trade to promote economic development and alleviate poverty.
The CGC stressed that Customs must play a central role in enforcing AfCFTA’s rules of origin and trade preferences. He cited past failures of regional trade due to Customs being sidelined and called for deeper engagement across African administrations.
Recent diplomatic efforts include a strategic meeting in Ghana with the AfCFTA Secretary-General, reinforcing Nigeria’s leadership in shaping the continent’s trade future.
C-PACT Summit, a continental milestone will hold in Abuja from 17–19 November 2025.
Over 30 Customs administrations, 22 of them led by Directors-General are expected to participate with strong private-sector turnaround.
Adeniyi confirmed that Nigeria will host WCO Secretary-General Ian Sanders for the first time, marking a significant endorsement of Nigeria’s rising influence in global trade diplomacy.
He also highlighted the growing momentum in Nigeria’s export performance, saying volumes have increased by more than 30% the past two years, emphasizing, “the current challenge is to redirect more of this trade towards African markets. He credited strong institutional alignment—from the Ministry of Finance to AFREXIMBANK and NEPC—for creating a “historic window” for Nigeria to lead Africa’s economic transformation.
Dr. Adeniyi urged the press to amplify awareness ahead of the summit, especially the opening day’s dialogue with private-sector leaders to spotlight persistent barriers to intra-African trade.