*Customs and American Business Council: Strengthening the Language of Trade*
By Abdulsalam Mahmud,
There are meetings that pass quietly, and there are meetings that signal a shift. The recent courtesy visit by the American Business Council to the headquarters of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in Abuja belonged firmly to the latter category.
It was not loud, and it was not ceremonial for ceremony’s sake. But in its tone, exchanges and intent, it spoke clearly about where Nigeria’s trade conversations are headed. On Wednesday, December 10, 2025, the Comptroller-General of the NIgeria Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, received the delegation at the Customs House in Maitama.
The atmosphere was deliberate and reflective. This was not a visit driven by complaints alone, nor was it a public relations exercise. It was a working conversation between regulators and investors who understand that trade only functions when trust exists on both sides.
From the outset, Adeniyi made it clear that the Service now sees stakeholder engagement as a necessity, not an optional courtesy. In his remarks, he acknowledged that customs administration in the modern era cannot operate in isolation.
Trade thrives on dialogue, predictability and openness, especially in an economy seeking to attract long-term investment. He spoke plainly about the steps Customs has taken in recent years to open its processes and reduce friction at the ports and borders.
Transparency, he said, is no longer an abstract ideal but something that must show up in day-to-day operations, from documentation to cargo examination and dispute resolution. One of the key reforms he highlighted was the deployment of the One-Stop-Shop initiative across major commands.
The idea, as Adeniyi explained, is simple: reduce bottlenecks, shorten clearance time and minimise the confusion that arises when multiple agencies operate without coordination. For businesses, predictability matters just as much as speed.
The Comptroller-General did not pretend that challenges no longer exist. Instead, he acknowledged concerns raised by members of the American Business Council and assured them that Customs would continue to address operational issues within its mandate.
Trade facilitation, he noted, is a shared responsibility, and sustained engagement is often the most effective way to resolve problems before they escalate. What stood out was the tone of realism. Adeniyi was not promising perfection. He was offering consistency, communication and a willingness to listen.
For investors who operate in complex environments, that approach often matters more than sweeping declarations. Earlier in the meeting, the Chief Executive Officer of the American Business Council, Margaret Olele, explained the purpose of the visit. She said the Council wanted to strengthen its relationship with the Nigeria Customs and build on what she described as noticeable improvements over the past year.
According to Olele, many American companies operating in Nigeria have observed clearer procedures, better communication channels and faster responses to trade-related enquiries. These changes, she said, may not always make headlines, but they shape how investors experience the business environment on a daily basis.
She emphasised that predictability and transparency remain central concerns for businesses. When companies understand the rules and trust that those rules will be applied consistently, they are more likely to commit resources, expand operations and create jobs.
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Olele also referenced the Nigeria Customs Act 2023, noting that the legal framework has provided a clearer basis for ongoing reforms. She said the Council is encouraged by the direction of modernisation under the current leadership and sees room for deeper collaboration.
Her appreciation for the Comptroller-General’s personal involvement was not incidental. In regulatory environments, leadership presence often signals seriousness. Olele noted that Adeniyi’s decision to receive the delegation himself reflected a willingness to engage directly with stakeholders rather than delegate dialogue.
Throughout the meeting, the conversation returned repeatedly to one theme: communication. Both sides acknowledged that many trade disputes arise not from deliberate obstruction but from gaps in understanding, coordination or information flow. Closing those gaps, they agreed, requires regular interaction rather than occasional visits.
This understanding led to a concrete outcome. Customs and the American Business Council agreed to institutionalise quarterly engagement sessions. These meetings will serve as platforms to review progress, identify emerging challenges and keep lines of communication open for American companies operating in Nigeria.
Such a commitment may sound modest, but in practice it can be transformative. Regular dialogue creates memory, accountability and continuity, especially in systems where personnel and circumstances change frequently. The presence of representatives from major American firms underscored the importance of the engagement.
Companies such as ExxonMobil, Chevron, Cisco and Mantrac were represented, alongside officials from the United States Embassy. Their participation reflected both the scale of American business interests in Nigeria and the desire for stable regulatory relationships. Beyond the specifics of the meeting, the visit reflected a broader shift in how Nigeria’s trade institutions are positioning themselves.
The emphasis is no longer solely on enforcement, but on balance: securing borders while enabling legitimate trade. For the Nigeria Customs, this balance is not theoretical. It plays out daily at ports, airports and land borders, where decisions affect costs, timelines and confidence. Engaging directly with business groups allows the Service to see how its policies are experienced on the ground.
For the American Business Council, the visit reaffirmed the value of structured engagement with regulators. Advocacy, in this context, is less about confrontation and more about conversation grounded in mutual interest. There is also a wider message for Nigeria’s investment climate.
When regulatory agencies show openness to dialogue and businesses respond with constructive engagement, the result is a more predictable environment for investment. The meeting did not resolve every issue, nor did it attempt to. Its significance lay in its honesty. Both sides recognised that trade facilitation is a continuous process, shaped by law, infrastructure, technology and human judgment.
As Nigeria continues to position itself as a key trade hub in West Africa, such conversations will matter increasingly. Policies can be written in offices, but trust is built across tables like the one set in Maitama last Wednesday morning at the Customs Headquarters. In the end, the visit was less about protocol and more about language.
Customs and the American Business Council were speaking the same one: the language of cooperation, clarity and shared responsibility. And in the complex grammar of international trade, that may be the most important sentence of all.
Mahmud, Deputy Editor of PRNigeria, wrote in via: [email protected].
