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By Kenneth Jukpor
The federal government has set a revenue target of N4.1trillion for the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), a figure which represents 23.9% of the nation’s 2022 budget of N17.1trillion.
The Customs Area Controller of Apapa Command, Comptroller Yusuf Malanta revealed this today while briefing journalists on the review of 2021 and the expectations for 2022 at the Command.
Although the Customs boss stated that the figure is yet to be broken down into respective targets for various Commands, he observed that the Apapa Command is usually saddled with the onus of about 25% of the Service annual targets.
This is coming on the heels of growing concerns that the burden of fiscal targets has driven some Customs officers and Commands to operate overzealously as port stakeholders lament that trade facilitation has been relegated to the background.
Malanta, however, said the Apapa Command is ready to play its role towards actualizing the revenue target for 2022, disclosing that the Command collected N870.4billion from importers in 2021.
His words: “Welcome to 2022, the year of hope and high expectations, particularly with increase in the service revenue target to N4.1 trillion naira. For us in Apapa Area Command, we have already boarded and fastened our seat towards the realization of this revenue target (In sha Allah). We hope that the service will surely leverage on the deployment of digital transformation of Customs business processes which will further take care of many control mechanisms through its risk management system. This transformation will further harmonize the activities of our stakeholders toward a seamless ease of doing business in the port.”
Speaking on the revenue collected for 2021, Malanta expressed satisfaction that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, traffic gridlock and other challenges, the Command was able to exceed the revenue target for last year.
According to him, the revenue profile of the Command increased by 68% in 2021 when compared to the N518.4 billion collected in 2020.
The Customs boss stressed the need to deepen exports in a bid to stabilize the nation’s economy, noting that the Command has introduced some trade facilitation strategies which had positively impacted export trade through Apapa port.
“In the year under review, the Command recorded a boom in the exportation of non-oil commodities with about 110% increase in tonnage above the figure of the year 2020. Statistics from the export unit shows that goods with a total tonnage of about five million, three hundred and eighty metric tons were exported in the year 2021, as against one million, three hundred metric tons exported in 2020.”
“The Free on Board (FOB) value for the exported items also rose from $340 million in the year 2020 to $641 million US dollars in 2021. The naira equivalent of the exported goods stood at over N245 billion naira. Items exported include steel bars, agricultural and mineral products, among others. This feat was achieved through the Federal government policy and export incentives schemes occasioned by the service facilitation and automation of NXP and CCI,” he said.
Malanta also noted that the Command has achieved a robust industrial harmony with all government agencies, especially its host, the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) and other sister agencies like the Department of State Security (DSS), National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Standards Organizations of Nigeria (SON), Port Police, as well as shipping lines and terminal operators.
The Apapa Customs boss also had the Port Manager of Lagos Port Complex, NPA, Mrs. Olufunmilayo Olotu and other representatives from NDLEA, DSS and freight forwarders present at the conference.
