By Stephen Ubanna
Barshir Adewale Adeniyi, Ph.D, Comptroller General, CG, Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, appears, determined to leave a legacy of Legitimate trade, improved trade facilitation, where compliance to cargo clearing processes thrives at the nation’s seaports that could compete with obtains at the port of Rotherdam, Netherlands and other notable ports across the world.
Caroline Niagwan, a Deputy Comptroller General, DCG, overseeing the Customs, Department of Trade and Tariff, who had accompanied the CGC, along side other top Customs officials including technical experts and Abdullahi Aliyu, Maiwada, an Assistant Comptroller and Customs spokesperson on a visit to the Customs Administration of Netherlands, CAN, may have given an insight to what Nigerian traders and agents should expect in Customs clearing processes at the nation’s seaports in no distant time.
The DCG, had alluded to the fact that the Netherlands cargo clearing processes which she had said demonstrates ‘’inclusivity, data intelligence, and inter-agency trust, describing it as indispensable elements of an active Customs system’’.
The CGC, had corroborated what the DCG, Trade and Tariff, had said about the changes that be introduced in the country’s cargo clearing processes at the nation’s seaports when he disclosed that that the engagement with the officials of the Customs Administration of Netherlands, had provided the NCS, delegation, with a clearer picture of how modern Customs Administrations can achieve efficiency through partnership, technology and shared expertise’’.
It would be recalled that over the years there had been reported cases of stolen vehicles from Netherland sipped to Nigeria from the port of Rotterdam without documents. Signs that Nigeria and Netherlands signed Bilateral ties would be taken to another level began in 2024, when Yusuf Tugar, minister of Foreign Affairs and Geofrey Van Leeuwen, the Dutch minister of Trade Development Cooperation, signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MOU, to further deepen the bilateral ties between the two countries in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
Mark Rutte, the then Dutch Prime Minister, of Netherland and now Secretary General of the European Union, EU, and who also doubles as the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO, and late President Muhammadu Buhari were said to have laid the foundation for the Bilateral relation between the two countries for improved volume of trades.
Acting on the existing Bilateral relationship between the two countries, CGC Adeniyi, had taken some senior Customs officers including the DCG, Tand T, and other technical experts on a two-day working visit to Netherland Customs Administration anchored on ‘’cooperation, mutual respect, and institutional learning’’.
CGC Adeniyi, who could not hide his feelings had said that ‘’the visit was aimed at strengthening cooperation on trade facilitation, port efficiency and border management between the two countries, from two different Continents, Africa and Europe.
The CGC Adeniyi had initiated the working visit on Wednesday, October 29, 202025, which terminated on Friday, October 31, 2025. The Bilateral discussions between the NCS experts’ team and the Netherlands Authorities was said to have ‘’featured series of high-level technical engagements and strategic meetings’’.
The NCS, delegation, were said to have started their day on the first day of their stay in Netherlands with the familiarizations of the Dutch Customs operations at the Headquarters in Laan op Zuid, Rotterdam where they were received by the senior officials of the Customs Administration.
CGC Adeniyi, and his team members were said to have attended a presentation by the National Tariff Classification Team, Team LTT, led by one Ed Tulp, which was said to have ‘’focused on tariff and origin procedures within the Dutch system’’
The presentation by TeamLTT, was said to have been quickly followed by an in-depth session on ‘’Risk Management’’, that was delivered by one Dennis Van der Wolk of the Dutch Customs National Tactical Centre, DLTC, which was said to have highlighted ‘’the Netherlands’ model of risk profiling, cargo monitoring and tactical decision-making in Customs operations’’.
Cgc Adeniyi and his team members were said to have held a closed- door meeting with the Head of International Affairs at the Netherlands Customs, where their discussions were said to have ‘’centered on enhancing inter-agency coordination, capacity-building exchange programs and digital trade processes’’.
CGC, who could not his feelings had commended the Dutch Customs structured approach ‘’to tariff classification, and risk management’’, noting that the presentations have been particularly insightful in showing ‘’how systematic collaboration and how data-driven analysis can enhance compliance and trade facilitation across borders’’.
The Customs Comptroller General, was said to have alluded in his remarks that the NCS, under his Leadership, remains committed ‘’to adopting international best practices that balance enforcement with trade facilitation, and ensuring that Legitimate trade thrives while revenue and security interest are safeguarded’’.
The NCS, delegation, were said to have also visited the Schiphol International airport, where officials of the airport cargo made a detailed presentation on ‘’cargo clearance and classification systems’’ at one of Europe’s busiest air freight hubs.
The session, according to the CGC, provided ‘’a firsthand understanding of the Netherlands use of automation, pre-arrival processing and coordinated border management in handling high-volume air cargo’’.
CGC Adeniyi, led delegation to Netherlands Customs Administration engagement, was said to have continued with a Bilateral session at the country’s ministry of Foreign Affairs, hosted by the Director General of International Trade, Machiel Zweers, where the two parties had discussed ‘’the frameworks for technical assistance and knowledge exchange’’.
The Customs delegation was said to have held another high-level meeting at the Netherlands ministry of Finance to wrap up the two -day working visit to the country. The session, according AC, Maiwada in a statement had reviewed the key observations and findings from previous engagements and further ‘’explored the mechanisms ‘’to formalize a collaborative agreement in the areas of tariff classification, risk management, trade facilitation and gender equity’’.
Zweers had reaffirmed the Netherlands commitment ‘’to fostering mutual learning between the two Customs Administrations ‘’, describing ‘’the NCS, visit as a new chapter of institutional partnership built on trust and innovation’’.
He had expressed optimism that the engagement between the Netherlands Customs Administration and the NCS, would lay a strong foundation for long-term institutional collaboration.
DCG. Nigwan, who had expressed her appreciation for the Netherlands ‘structure cargo processes, opined that ‘’the tactical insights gained here will be instrumental in improving Nigeria’s cargo handling systems, particular, within the Service ongoing Modernosation drive’’.
The NCS, delegation, visit to the Netherlands Customs Administration was said to have been concluded with a guided tour of the port of Rotterdam, where the Customs officials were said to have been briefed on ‘’the ports integrated logistics operations, advanced cargo- tracking systems and intermodal transport models’’.
The tour of the port of Rotterdam, may have given the CGC, the audacity to declare that ‘’it was an eye-opener on ‘’how synergy between Customs personnel and port Authorities can create enabling environment for seamless trade and revenue optimization’’.
Giving his closing remarks at the tail end of the visit to the port of Rotterdam tour, CGC Adeniyi, had emhasised that ‘’it symbolized the NCS strategic intent to benchmark global standards’’. According to him, the visit to the Netherlands Customs Administration, which afforded the Customs Management to rub minds with top officials of the Netherlands ministries of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Cooperation and Finance which has provided them a clearer picture of ‘’how modern Customs Administrations can achieve efficiency through partnership, technology and shared expertise’’.
