By Oluyinka Onigbinde
More than three months after the Federal Government commenced the rollout of the National Single Window (NSW), exporters and shipping industry operators have expressed disappointment over the pace of implementation, citing persistent technical glitches, recurring system downtime and the failure to fully integrate key stakeholders into the digital trade platform.
The National Single Window, which commenced operations in March 2026 amid widespread expectations, was introduced to simplify trade procedures, eliminate multiple documentation requirements, reduce cargo clearance time and improve Nigeria’s ease of doing business. It was also expected to provide a seamless electronic platform linking government agencies, importers, exporters, customs brokers, shipping companies and other participants in the international trade value chain.
However, findings by Shipping Position Daily indicate that many of the objectives are yet to be fully realised, with exporters lamenting that the export component remains plagued by operational challenges while shipping companies are yet to be fully onboarded.
Although some stakeholders had initially dismissed the early setbacks as teething problems associated with the deployment of a new digital platform, concerns are mounting that more than three months after its rollout, many of the critical issues remain unresolved.
Industry players who spoke with Shipping Position Daily said frequent system maintenance, uncertainty over the export modules and incomplete integration of critical stakeholders have continued to frustrate legitimate trade, contrary to the expectations that greeted the initiative.
Speaking with Shipping Position Daily, President of the Oyo Shippers Association, Mrs. Elizabeth Nwakwo, said exporters have continued to experience operational challenges while using the platform, revealing that the system was recently inaccessible due to maintenance.
According to her, although exporters had begun using aspects of the platform, the recurring downtime has disrupted activities.
“We traded on the platform, but in the last few days the site has been down for maintenance. I will check again and send you a report,” she said.
Mrs. Nwakwo explained that beyond the maintenance issues, exporters still encounter operational bottlenecks arising from the way some government agencies interface with the platform, noting that these continue to slow down trade processes.
She maintained that unless these issues are addressed, exporters may not enjoy the seamless trade environment promised under the National Single Window initiative.
Further findings by Shipping Position Daily also revealed that shipping companies, which were expected to form part of the pilot phase of the project, are yet to be fully integrated into the platform.
A senior official at Grimaldi Shipping, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment publicly, disclosed that although considerable progress has been made, the onboarding of shipping companies has not been completed due to unresolved technical issues.
“They’ve gone far, but they’ve not fully commenced with shipping companies because there are still some areas that have not been properly fixed by the National Single Window team,” the source said.
According to the source, the platform has recorded some improvements over the past few months, particularly in its capacity to process cargo manifests.
“Initially, the system could only process about 1,000 Bills of Lading before encountering limitations, but it can now accommodate up to 4,000 Bills of Lading. That is a significant improvement.”
Despite the progress, the source stressed that shipping companies are still not fully onboarded, adding that some critical gaps remain before full implementation can be achieved.
The source, however, acknowledged that some participating government agencies, including the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS) and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), are already operating effectively on the platform.
Some exporters also expressed concern that despite the government’s continued promotion of the National Single Window as a major trade facilitation reform, many users are yet to experience the seamless digital environment that was promised.
According to them, each period of system downtime or incomplete integration translates into delays, additional costs and uncertainty for exporters already grappling with a challenging business environment.
Stakeholders argued that unless the Federal Government urgently addresses the outstanding technical issues and completes the integration of shipping companies and other critical stakeholders, the National Single Window may struggle to achieve its objective of reducing the cost and time of doing business at Nigeria’s seaports.
The Federal Government has repeatedly described the National Single Window as one of its flagship economic reforms, projecting that it would eliminate duplication of processes, improve transparency, facilitate paperless trade and significantly enhance Nigeria’s competitiveness in international commerce.
However, industry operators insist that those expectations remain largely unrealised more than three months after the platform was rolled out.
All efforts by Shipping Position Daily to obtain the reaction of the National Single Window Project Management Office proved unsuccessful.
Repeated telephone calls and text messages sent to officials of the project over a two-week period were neither acknowledged nor responded to as of the time of filing this report.
