The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has announced that more than 30 Customs administrations, including the Secretary-General of the World Customs Organization (WCO), Ian Sanders, will be in Nigeria from 17–19 November 2025 for the maiden Customs Partnership for African Cooperation in Trade (C-PACT) Conference holding in Abuja.
Briefing State House Correspondents on Friday, 14 November 2025, Adeniyi described the upcoming C-PACT Summit as a landmark initiative aimed at addressing long-standing gaps in regional collaboration and opening a new era of direct engagement among African Customs administrations, policymakers, and private-sector players.
According to him, over 30 Customs administrations have already registered to participate, with 22 led at the level of Directors-General. He added that the growing interest from private-sector stakeholders is one of the most promising signs ahead of the event.
Adeniyi also confirmed that Nigeria will, for the first time, host the Secretary-General of the WCO, Ian Sanders — a development he said underscores Nigeria’s rising leadership role in continental trade diplomacy.
The CGC highlighted Nigeria’s renewed commitment to deepening trade integration and advancing Customs-driven reforms across the continent. He noted that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent approval extending his mandate came with clearly defined targets focused on trade facilitation, port decongestion, and modernisation of cross-border systems.
He explained that the President’s directives reflect a strategic push to leverage trade as a key driver of economic growth, reaffirming the government’s determination to position Nigeria as a major hub for intra-African commerce.
“Mr President has made it very clear that he intends to use trade to promote economic development and alleviate poverty,” he said. “So I was not surprised that the implementation of the continental free trade agreement was specifically mentioned in my renewed mandate.”
Adeniyi further revealed that since receiving the directive, he has intensified engagements with his counterparts across the continent, including a recent strategic meeting in Ghana with the Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). He emphasised that Customs administrations must play a central role in implementing AfCFTA if the agreement’s objectives are to be achieved.
“For years, regional trade arrangements struggled because Customs was not brought in early enough,” he noted. “If we must achieve AfCFTA’s goals, Customs must enforce rules of origin, apply preferences, and ensure that only legitimate goods benefit from the agreement.”
The CGC also pointed to the growing momentum in Nigeria’s export sector, disclosing that export volumes have risen by more than 30 percent in the last two years. However, he stressed the need to redirect a larger share of these exports into African markets.
Adeniyi acknowledged strong institutional backing from the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, AFREXIMBANK, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, port authorities, and other agencies involved in cross-border trade. Their alignment, he said, has created a “historic window” for Nigeria to consolidate its leadership in Africa’s economic transformation.
He appealed to the State House Press Corps to support public awareness efforts ahead of the summit, noting that the opening day will feature direct engagements with private-sector operators across Africa to identify persistent challenges affecting the movement of goods across the continent.
