Customs, World Bank conclude two-week Audit Reform Mission

By Adebola Isimijola, Lagos

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the World Bank Group have concluded a two-week Technical Assistance Mission on Post Clearance Audit (PCA) aimed at strengthening customs compliance, boosting revenue assurance and improving trade facilitation in Nigeria.

The development was contained in a statement made available to journalists on Wednesday by the National Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Customs Service, CSC Abdullahi Aliyu Maiwada.

The mission, conducted under the Accelerated Revenue Mobilisation Reform (ARMOR) Programme from June 1 to 12, focused on enhancing audit operations through modern, risk-based and intelligence-driven practices.

Speaking at the closing ceremony on behalf of the Comptroller-General of Customs, the Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of Human Resource Development, Tijjani Abe, said the Service remained committed to strengthening Post Clearance Audit as a key tool for promoting voluntary compliance, facilitating legitimate trade and protecting government revenue.

According to him, effective customs administration depends on intelligence-driven, risk-based and internationally compliant audit systems.

“The true measure of success will not be the completion of this programme, but the extent to which the knowledge acquired translates into improved performance, stronger compliance outcomes and enhanced service delivery,” Abe stated.

He reaffirmed the Service’s commitment to sustained collaboration with the World Bank Group, the World Customs Organisation (WCO) and other development partners in advancing customs reforms.

Also speaking, the Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of Post Clearance Audit, Babatunde Olomu, described the mission as a major step towards modernising audit operations within the Service.

Olomu said the technical deliberations, practical problem-solving sessions and assessments carried out during the exercise had laid a solid foundation for institutional and operational reforms.

“The experiences exchanged and outputs developed during this mission will undoubtedly serve as catalysts for a new era of PCA modernisation and development in the NCS,” he said.

Among the key deliverables presented at the end of the mission were draft Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), a Case File Management System, trader segmentation logic, audit checklists, registry management systems and quality assurance frameworks.

Participants also unveiled an annual audit plan covering 30 audit cases across the Customs Headquarters and three operational zones, with implementation expected within 45 days.

On his part, World Bank Task Team Lead, Moses Kajubi, expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the mission and stressed the need for sustained institutional support and continuous capacity building.

“For PCA to deliver value, we do not only need tools and processes; institutional support and continuous capacity building are equally important,” Kajubi said.

He reaffirmed the World Bank’s commitment to supporting capacity development and implementation efforts within the Nigeria Customs Service.