Customs Facilitates First AfCFTA Shipment to Kenya

Samuel Mobolaji

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), on Sunday, announced the facilitation of Nigeria’s first shipment to Kenya under the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA).

NCS in a statement made available to the newsmen by the National Public Relations officer of the service, Abdulahi Maiwada, Lucky Fibres, a subsidiary of the Tolaram Group, is one of the first companies to ship goods to Kenya under AfCFTA.

Speaking during a visit to the Apapa Area Command of the service to ensure proper documentation and verification of the shipment, the 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.

According to Olutayo, he has communicated with AfCFTA implementation committee in Kenya.

“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 noted.

He emphasised the critical role of the service as the Designated Competent Authority (DCA) under AfCFTA, leveraging its expertise to ensure seamless trade.

“The Nigeria Customs Service has been fantastic; they are ready to facilitate trade. Once they hear that there is an issue, particularly around AfCFTA, you will see everybody ready to support and facilitate it, which is the essence of true trade facilitation,” he said.

The releasing officer for Lilypond Export Command at Apapa Area Command, Assistant Comptroller Olusola Salako, highlighted the Nigeria Customs Service’s efforts to leverage technology to ensure that AfCFTA is successful in Africa.

“The service has aligned with the mandates of the World Customs Organisation to prioritise 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 concluded.