Customs: N34tn Duty Waivers Impact Revenue

​The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has revealed that the Federal Government granted Import Duty Exemption Certificate (IDEC) approvals totaling approximately ₦34 trillion in 2025. This significant volume of fiscal incentives, according to the Customs boss, has hampered the service’s capacity to maximize revenue generation.

​Adeniyi disclosed these figures on Monday during an investigative hearing held by the Senate Committee on Finance in Abuja. While acknowledging the NCS’s status as a premier revenue-generating agency, he explained that government-approved duty waivers and policy interventions have played a pivotal role in limiting collections over recent years.

​Breakdown of Waivers

​The Comptroller-General clarified that the ₦34 trillion figure represents a strategic use of fiscal policy to address national challenges. Key highlights regarding these exemptions include:

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• ​Security Priorities: Roughly 60 percent of the 2025 waivers were attributed to the procurement of military hardware, necessary to combat Nigeria’s prevailing security threats.

• ​Economic & Social Interventions: The remaining exemptions supported critical sectors, including the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) infrastructure, electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment, medical supplies, industrial machinery, and government-led food intervention programmes.

​Call for Enhanced Oversight

​While defending the intent behind the IDEC scheme—which was automated in 2020 to provide a streamlined framework for fiscal incentives—Adeniyi cautioned that policy impact should not be viewed through a revenue-only lens. However, he urged the Federal Government to implement more rigorous monitoring mechanisms. Such oversight is essential to ensure that beneficiaries of these waivers deliver tangible results, such as reduced consumer prices, increased domestic industrial production, and improved healthcare access.

​Regarding the 2026 fiscal year, Adeniyi reported that the NCS had collected ₦4.5 trillion toward its ₦11.04 trillion revenue target as of June 30, leaving a balance of approximately ₦7 trillion to be realized in the second half of the year.

​Senate Scrutiny of Revenue Agencies

​The investigative session also touched upon broader concerns regarding the remittance of operating surpluses. The Fiscal Responsibility Commission alleged that several agencies, including the NCS and the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), held outstanding liabilities.

​The Senate Committee on Finance, led by Senator Sani Musa, directed the involved parties to reconcile their financial records within two weeks. Senator Musa also issued a stern warning to the leadership of agencies such as the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), and the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), threatening sanctions should they fail to appear at the next scheduled hearing.