The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) announced that it generated N1.347 trillion in revenue between January and March 2024, surpassing the monthly average revenue target of about N4.2 billion for the year.
Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, shared this update during a press briefing on Wednesday, highlighting the 122.35 percent increase compared to the N606.19 billion collected in the same period last year.
Adeniyi mentioned that the Service faced several systemic challenges during this period, notably the significant fluctuations in the foreign exchange rate, which posed challenges to its operations.
However, he assured that the Customs, in collaboration with the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, was working closely with the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to prevent a recurrence of the exchange rate fluctuations. He noted that these fluctuations occurred about 13 times in March alone.
“We have not done anything to alter the rates. The rates for clearance for vehicles remain the same. We are monitoring the situation. Unlike in the previous dispensation when CBN was lord unto themselves; when nobody could talk to them, this one is better,” Adeniyi emphasized. He highlighted the improved communication and collaboration between the Customs and the CBN compared to previous times.
During the same first quarter of 2024, the Customs made 572 seizures, with rice smuggling leading the list of seizures.
