The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has emerged as one of Nigeria’s highest-performing government agencies in trade facilitation following its outstanding performance in the 2025 Business Facilitation Act (BFA) Compliance Assessment conducted by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC).
According to the assessment released by PEBEC on Friday, 3 July 2026, the Nigeria Customs Service met all prescribed compliance standards and recorded significant improvements in the speed, efficiency and responsiveness of its trade-related services, placing it among the best-performing Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) evaluated.
Speaking on the assessment, the Director-General of PEBEC, Zahrah Audu, said the Service distinguished itself by fully complying with the requirements of the Business Facilitation Act while demonstrating remarkable progress in delivering faster and more efficient trade services.
“The Nigeria Customs Service stood out by meeting all the required standards while recording notable improvements in the timeliness and efficiency of its response to trade-related matters,” Audu said.
She noted that the achievement reflects the Service’s commitment to fostering a more transparent, predictable and business-friendly trading environment, in line with the Federal Government’s Ease of Doing Business agenda.
Audu further disclosed that 98 per cent of the 69 Ministries, Departments and Agencies assessed under the Business Facilitation Act are now meeting expected service delivery standards, describing the outcome as clear evidence that the reforms introduced under the Act are yielding positive results across the public sector.
The latest recognition follows a series of transformative reforms introduced by the Nigeria Customs Service to modernise customs administration and improve trade facilitation.
Among the key initiatives are the deployment of the B’Odogwu Unified Customs Management System, the implementation of the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) Programme and the introduction of the Advance Ruling System.
The reforms have significantly streamlined import and export processes, reduced cargo clearance delays, enhanced transparency and strengthened the efficiency of customs operations, reinforcing the Service’s role in promoting seamless trade, improving revenue generation and boosting Nigeria’s competitiveness in the global trading environment.
