The duplication of single window application in the Nigeria Customs Service Act and the Tax Administration Act has been flagged by licensed customs agents as an impediment to cargo clearance. The agents have petitioned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, warning that the implementation of the National Single Window will lead to increased costs of doing business at the port. The National President of the National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents, Lucky Amiwero, has expressed concerns that the National Single Window contravenes the International Convention on Agreement on Trade Facilitation.
According to Amiwero, the National Single Window portal duplicates provisions in the Nigeria Customs Act 35 of 2023 and the Tax Administration Act 5 of 2025. This, he claims, is a contravention of the International Convention on Agreement on Trade Facilitation, which established the Single Window under Articles 4-(1)-(5). Amiwero also pointed out that the Presidential Task force on Customs Reform had introduced the Single Window system as a one-stop shop trade facilitation tool.
The licensed customs agents are urging the federal government to suspend the implementation of the National Single Window, citing concerns over its duplication of functions and potential negative impact on trade and foreign direct investment. Amiwero warned that the implementation of the National Single Window will create obstacles to trade and divert goods to neighboring countries, affecting foreign direct investment.
The duplication of single window application in the Nigeria Customs Service Act and the Tax Administration Act is a clear case of bureaucratic red tape that is suffocating Nigeria's economy. The National President of the National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents, Lucky Amiwero, is right to urge the federal government to suspend the implementation of the National Single Window. The implementation of this policy will not only lead to increased costs of doing business at the port but also create obstacles to trade and divert goods to neighboring countries, affecting foreign direct investment. The federal government must take immediate action to address this issue and ensure that Nigeria's ports are not turned into a hub for bureaucratic inefficiency. The cost of doing business at Nigeria's ports is already high, and the implementation of the National Single Window will only make it worse.
