In a strategic move to strengthen regulatory oversight and safeguard Nigeria’s petroleum supply chain, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the One-Stop-Shop (OSS) Committee have agreed to deepen collaboration through robust data sharing and intelligence-driven enforcement.
The agreement was reached during a high-level meeting between members of the Customs’ management team and the OSS Committee, who paid a courtesy visit to the Customs Headquarters in Maitama, Abuja. Both parties pledged to intensify efforts to curb petroleum products’ illicit diversion and smuggling.
Receiving the delegation on behalf of the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, the Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of Enforcement, Inspection and Investigation, DCG Olaniyi Alajogun, emphasised the committee’s strategic importance and reaffirmed Customs’ commitment to providing operational support.
‘’From your mandate and composition, it is clear this assignment carries national importance. Mr President has assembled a strong team, and from the Customs side, I can assure you of our full cooperation. Our special task force continues to clamp down on the illegal movement of petroleum products, and we are seeing tangible results,” he stated.
He acknowledged the presence of a Customs representative on the committee. He promised to relay the delegation’s message to the Comptroller-General, assuring them that the Service would remain a strong pillar in the committee’s mission.
Earlier, Maureen Ogbonna, the National Coordinator of the One Stop Shop Committee and a senior official of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), commended the NCS for its active role in the committee and underscored the importance of institutional collaboration.
“We bring greetings from the Managing Director of the NPA, who chairs the OSS Committee. Your representative on the team has made us proud. The success of the One Stop Shop has been widely recognised and is being considered a model for replication in other critical sectors,” she said.
Ogbonna praised the Comptroller-General’s leadership and expressed confidence that enhanced inter-agency cooperation would lead to meaningful improvements in the distribution and regulation of petroleum products.
“We are convinced that with access to the right data and mutual support, this initiative will deliver even greater results,” Ogbonna added.
During the interactive session, both sides agreed that sustained data sharing and integrated intelligence would be key to achieving more effective oversight and operational efficiency.
The meeting also featured discussions on establishing joint response protocols and eliminating duplication of regulatory processes at the nation’s entry and exit points.
Senior representatives from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and Dangote Refinery attended the event.
Other participants included officials from the Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Ports Authority, and technical officers from both the OSS Committee and the NCS
