The Nigeria Customs Service has said the drop in the country’s imports is a result of the hostile trade policy of the Benin Republic.
This was disclosed by the Customs Area Controller in charge of Seme command, Dera Nnadi, recently at the command headquarters.
He blamed the Benin Republic’s trade policy for the dearth of imports through the command.
Nnadi also said the command recorded five import declarations with a total duty paid value of N13m paid in 10 days.
“The command recorded only five declarations of import within this period with a total of N13.38m paid as a duty. The dearth in import is as a result of the trade policy introduced by the Republic of Benin which traders and indeed the service consider hostile to Nigeria,” he explained.
According to him, within the period under review, 122 trucks carrying 3.77 metric tons of made-in-Nigeria products were exported.
Nnadi added that the exported products had a free onboard value of N523m and the National Export Supervision Scheme fee of N2m.
“In line with keeping to that promise but bearing in mind the challenges of the command as one that is still recovering from the effects of the border closure, the command has facilitated the movement of export trucks. Under the Economic Community of West African States Trade Liberalisation Scheme, 70 trucks with fees amounting to N1m were collected. There were 81 baggage declarations with duty amounting to N4m. The items imported under this arrangement included food products and beverages produced within the sub-region,” he further stated.
Nnadi disclosed that the revenue of the command had not improved since the reopening of the land borders.
He remarked, “It is worthy of note that the major source of revenue of the command (import/export) has not been enhanced since the opening of the land borders as directed by the Federal Government of Nigeria, as the traders are still bracing up with the challenges of having been out of business for over two years. It is important to note that the 2022 fiscal policy measures by the Federal Ministry of Finance lifted the ban on the export of goods imported into Nigeria hitherto prohibited under item 8 Schedule 6 of the Common External Tariff.
“Let me at this interval, appreciate the collaborative efforts of other sister agencies in the fight against smuggling and appeal for their continuous support. It is important to note that activities embarked upon by the command were patriotic duties in the interest of national security and the economic well-being of Nigeria. NCS operatives in observance of the rules of engagement will continue to carry out their legitimate duties as prescribed by the law.”
