Customs CGC Adeniyi Signs Anti-Corruption Documents, Activates ICRAM Committee

The Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, has signed key anti-corruption documents and directed their immediate implementation across all zones, commands and units of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

The documents, comprising the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Conducting Internal Corruption Risk Analysis and Mapping (ICRAM), the ICRAM Handbook and the Integrity Action Plan, were signed at the NCS Headquarters in Maitama, Abuja.

Adeniyi also formally activated the ICRAM Steering Committee as part of efforts to strengthen the Service’s systematic approach to identifying, assessing and addressing corruption risks across its operational and administrative processes.

The Customs boss said the documents were developed through collaboration between an internal NCS team, the World Customs Organisation (WCO), His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and other partner Customs administrations.

“These two documents are products of a painstaking process which we have undertaken with efforts from an internal team working together with our partners from the WCO and a number of other Customs administrations that have walked this path with us to ensure that we have a Service where integrity leads,” Adeniyi said.

He explained that the documents were designed as practical tools to enable Customs officers at ports, borders and airports to identify corruption risks within their areas of responsibility and implement targeted measures to address them.

According to him, the initiative would provide officers with the capacity to conduct corruption risk mapping and implement action plans aimed at strengthening integrity across the Service.

Earlier, the Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of the Strategic Research and Policy Department, Nafi’u Isyaku, who led senior officers in presenting the documents, sought approval for their full rollout across the NCS.

The ICRAM methodology had earlier been piloted across seven key Commands and Units, covering 66 processes under regulatory, core Customs and support functions.

The pilot locations included Apapa Area Command under the sea modality; Murtala Muhammed Cargo (MMAC) and Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Commands under the air modality; and Seme Area Command under the land modality.

Other pilot locations were the Customs Police Unit, Zone A; PAAR Ruling Centre; and the Procurement Unit.

The exercise produced a comprehensive Integrity Action Plan containing 101 action items and 295 sub-action items.

Key areas identified for action include increased automation, stronger supervision and accountability, improved audit trails and traceability, clear segregation of duties, regular staff rotation, targeted training, and stronger controls in interactions between officers and stakeholders.

The initiative is expected to provide the NCS with a structured framework for detecting vulnerabilities and implementing preventive measures against corruption across its operations.