‘NSW critical to improving port efficiency, trade competitiveness’

Port industry stakeholders have rallied behind the National Single Window (NSW), dismissing recent calls for its cancellation as resistance from entrenched interests threatened by a system projected to block up to $3 billion in annual revenue leakages.

The strong endorsement came amid concerns over initial operational glitches following the platform’s launch on March 27, 2026 by the Federal Government, with industry players insisting that the reform remains critical to improving cargo clearance efficiency and enhancing Nigeria’s trade competitiveness.

Stakeholders at the Media Anti-Corruption Initiative’s (MACI) 2nd National Seminar in Apapa, which had as its theme “National Single Window: Strategies to Avert Failure,” explained that the pushback against the NSW was a predictable response from those who benefitted from the port system’s structural inefficiencies.

A representative of Truck Transit Park Limited (TTP), Joseph Alor, said resistance to the NSW reflects deeper structural issues within the maritime logistics chain.

He said: “It is understandable that when anything new is introduced, there would be kickbacks, there would be those who have been benefiting for a long time from the maladministration and not well-structured way of doing things.

“The truth is that whenever technology is introduced to make life better and bring orderliness into chaotic systems, those who are benefiting heavily from that disorderliness would want to kick back.

“They have their henchmen who come out with publications, who also come out with statements, but these statements when tested are not statements of facts. We have our records, we have eyewitness accounts, and we have testimonials about how much efficiency there has been.”

Alor acknowledged that global trade disruptions have affected cargo throughput and evacuation at some terminals but maintained that ongoing engagements are addressing operational inefficiencies.

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) also threw its weight behind the platform, assuring stakeholders that the NSW complements rather than replaces its statutory functions.

Speaking on behalf of the Comptroller-General through the Lagos Industrial Area Command, Superintendent of Customs J.D. Tomo said the initiative aligns with broader government reforms on trade facilitation.

“Executive Order 001 is about all agencies working together to achieve one result. B’Odogwu is for customs to generate revenue and make its operations seamless. It is for us to have a real-time report of activities of our operators.

“The NSW has not come to take over customs job, the NSW is to make port procedures seamless. We don’t have any fear about the NSW. We are working on the same platform, while everyone can view transactions on the same platform at the same time.

“This would make trade faster, seamless and also promote the economy. As Nigeria Customs Service officers, we embrace the NSW. We know that the programme has come to help our job easier and faster,” he said.

While endorsing the reform, operators warned that entrenched practices within the freight forwarding ecosystem could undermine its success if not addressed.

Chairman of the Association of Port and Forwarding Freight Logistics Operators of Nigeria (APFFLON), Tin Can Island chapter, Hakeem Ayobiojo, described the NSW as a long-term national legacy but cautioned against operational sabotage.

He said: “This is a future legacy that the federal government of Nigeria through the Ministry of Finance, Customs and other concerned agencies are taking their time to ensure that it works. This is a legacy that all the children yet unborn are going to follow through.

“My concern now is how do we guarantee the success of the NSW due to Nigerians way of doing business at the port?

“We have a Nigerian way of taking delivery of cargoes which some of it are detrimental to the economy of Nigeria. How do we curb all these activities and practices that freight forwarders and agents do at the port so as not to sabotage the efforts so far made to ensure that the NSW comes to stay?

“These are part of what I want the media to help us guard against, those vices that could circumvent the success of the NSW.”

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Providing a broader industry perspective, the Managing Director of Widescope Global, Dr. Segun Musa, characterised the NSW as a transformational reform capable of reshaping Nigeria’s trade architecture.

He said: “Launching Nigeria’s National Single Window is not merely a technical upgrade; it should be seen as a strategic overhaul of Nigeria’s trade ecosystem.

“If we get these fundamentals right, the rewards will be transformative. The World Bank finds that countries with modernized trade facilitation see trade grow much faster: efficient systems correlate with 15per cent higher exports and 10 per cent more FDI. This means more jobs, investment, and prosperity for Nigeria.”

He stressed the need for coordinated execution to unlock these gains.

“The time to act is now: let us invest in training, integrate our policies, build robust infrastructure, digitize end-to-end, and enforce integrity. By doing so, we will ensure the Single Window is not just launched, but launched for success.”

Despite teething challenges typical of new digital systems, stakeholders agreed that the NSW represents a critical step toward eliminating duplication, reducing cargo dwell time, and improving transparency across Nigeria’s ports.