AfCFTA Chief Seeks Adoption of Nigeria Customs’ Digital Innovations Across Africa

The Secretary General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Wamkele Mene, has commended the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for its technology driven reforms, calling for the adoption of its digital innovations by customs administrations across Africa.

Mene made the call on Thursday, August 6, 2026, during a working visit to the NCS Headquarters in Maitama, Abuja, where he described the Service’s technological advancements as practical African solutions to persistent challenges in trade facilitation, revenue collection and border management.

The AfCFTA chief said many African countries were still relying on manual customs processes, which, according to him, had contributed to revenue leakages, delays at borders and the low volume of intra-African trade.

He said Nigeria’s progress in customs digitalisation provided an opportunity for other African countries to learn from and replicate the innovations to strengthen trade administration across the continent.

Mene said, “What we have seen today is truly state of the art. I sincerely congratulate the NCS for what it has achieved within such a short period.

“We would like to work together and learn from what Nigeria has accomplished because this innovation has inherent benefits not only for Nigeria, but for the entire African continent.”

He further described the NCS data centre as a strategic continental asset that could potentially support African countries that lacked the financial and technical capacity to establish similar infrastructure.

According to him, the facility is evidence that African countries are increasingly developing the capacity to design, deploy and manage critical digital infrastructure to address the continent’s peculiar challenges.

Responding, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, expressed appreciation to the AfCFTA Secretary-General for recognising the Service’s ongoing modernisation efforts.

Adeniyi reaffirmed the NCS commitment to developing technology-driven solutions that respond to Africa’s unique trade realities while supporting the objectives of the continental free trade agreement.

He said the Service remained open to collaboration with AfCFTA and other African customs administrations to deepen digital integration, facilitate legitimate trade and strengthen economic cooperation across the continent.

“We sincerely appreciate your passion for promoting intra-African trade and strengthening the interconnectivity of customs systems across the continent.

“We are not done yet. We will continue to expand the frontiers of innovation, learning from global best practices while developing solutions that advance the peculiar interests of the African continent,” Adeniyi said.

The Comptroller-General added that the recognition from AfCFTA further strengthened the Service’s resolve to sustain its modernisation agenda and position technology as a key driver of efficient customs administration and trade facilitation.

The engagement between the NCS and AfCFTA is expected to further promote collaboration on customs digitalisation, interoperability and the deployment of technology to reduce trade barriers and boost intra-African commerce.