New Telegraph

Half year report: Customs generates N229.3bn at Tincan Port

…deploys monitoring team, CIU to boost revenue

 

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has generated N229.3billion from Tincan Island Port in the first half of the year. The revenue was N52billion higher than the N117.2billion the service generated in 2020.

 

A breakdown of the revenue indicated NSC’s Tincan Island Command’s revenue grew by 19.08 per cent to hit N41.2billion from N34.6 billion recorded in 2020.

 

In February, the command generated N31.7 billion, an increase of 23.35 per cent from N25.7 billion collected in 2020 in the same period. Also in March, N39.6 billion was generated as against N31.2 billion collected in the corresponding period of 2020.

 

The command also generated N45 billion in April; May, N36.7 billion and June, N34.8 billion

 

. The service’s Public Relations Officer of the command, Uche Ejesieme, noted that despite the lull in cargo volume, measures adopted by the command, including the use of ICT and intelligence to profile consignments, contributed to increase in the command’s revenue profile.

 

Also, Ejesieme said the service had the compliance and monitoring team and Customs Intelligence Unit (CIU) supplying intelligence and working with the terminal heads, examination and releasing officers which also helped in shooting up revenue by the time the intelligence was converted.

 

He noted: “Because of the global recession and other challenges, cargo throughput has actually dropped but we are lucky, it has not affected our revenue because the command has created a lot of platforms to check revenue leakages. “The Controller has brought his experience to bear, being an ICT savvy person. He knows how to use ICT to profile consignments.

 

The whole essence is just for us to add value on any SGD because noncompliance is still an issue but we thank God with the kind of stakeholders we have and how we have been interfacing with them. We have recorded a paradigm shift such that people are beginning to understand that there is actually a reward for compliance.

 

“The most important is the monetary and compliance unit. Part of the chunk of revenue we have gotten so far is also attributable to their resilience and professionalism in trying to block to some reasonable extent areas that revenue ought to have gone into private hands.”

 

Ejesieme said that the command gave priority release of consignment to compliant traders, who are beneficiaries of the fast track scheme, including members of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN).

 

The Controller of the command, Comptroller Musa Baba Abdulahi, attributed the growth in the command’s revenue to measures put in place to block all revenue leakages and increase in level of compliance, especially by importers who are members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria. He said: “Import flow has reduced but because it is a gradual thing. It has not affected our revenue.

 

We may start observing it in the next two months if the situation does not improve. But at the moment, we are N52 billion above last year’s collection from January to June. The Tin Can port is gradually becoming the manufacturers’ port. They are compliant and they pay their duty because they know the importance of time.”

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