Market News

The Shippers Association of Lagos State has cited multiple levies, illegal checkpoints, arbitrary container stoppages, extensive delays, bureaucratic processes and a system that penalises compliant importers and exporters as part of the challenges impeding trade at the Lagos ports.

The President of SALS, Nicodemus Odolo, stated this on Wednesday while speaking during the 2025 Shippers’ Day celebration in Lagos. He explained that the prevailing situation is discouraging Nigerians from importing and exporting goods.

He added that the number of shippers currently in the business is declining daily due to a harsh operating environment.

The event, which was themed ‘Challenges Between Revenue Generation and Trade Facilitation’, also featured presentations from the Nigeria Customs Service, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, and other operators at the Lagos port.

Speaking further, Odolo said, “My own cargo can stay in the port for three months because I want to do it right.

Whoever wants to do things right in Nigeria suffers. Those who want to do it wrong get the benefits.”

He described situations where police officers stop export containers on highways to query Customs duty, a role outside their statutory mandate.

Earlier, the Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Dr Pius Akutah, while speaking on the theme ‘Multiple Taxes and Levies’, emphasised that multiple, overlapping and often contradictory taxes and levies imposed on shippers and service providers across the logistics chain distort pricing, create uncertainty and weaken Nigeria’s attractiveness as a trade hub.

He acknowledged stakeholders’ concerns regarding import costs and overall business sustainability related to the NCS’s four per cent tax on the Free on Board value of all imported goods.

Akutah said that the NSC has already initiated engagements with relevant authorities to ensure that such policies, where necessary, are clearly evaluated, harmonised and aligned with national economic priorities.

“Our position remains that any fiscal measures within the port system must support trade, not stifle it. We remain committed to driving reforms that ensure fairness, transparency and efficiency in the port environment,” Akutah stated.

In his paper presentation titled “National Single Window: Simplifying Trade Processes for Nigerian Shippers”, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the Federal Government’s unified platform is targeting an economic growth of $1 tn by the first quarter of 2026.

Represented at the event by the Zonal Coordinator of Zone A of the NCS, Mohammed Babandede, the CGC said that the centralised electronic trade platform “will integrate various trade and regulatory bodies, leading to more efficient operations, reduced bottlenecks and enhanced revenue generation for the government.”

He also informed the gathering that the National Single Window and the B’Odogwu system are complementary and deeply integrated components of a unified digital trade ecosystem.

Adeniyi added that the B’Odogwu system will work hand in hand with the NSW to fully align Nigeria’s trade processes with global best practices, eliminate duplication, reduce bottlenecks, and enhance efficiency and transparency across all aspects of trade for the benefit of shippers and traders.

SALS is a trade and interest group representing importers and exporters (“shippers”) based in Lagos State, particularly those who use the ports in Lagos for international cargo. Its role is to give shippers a collective voice: to advocate for their interests, negotiate with shipping lines and terminal operators, and serve as a platform for addressing problems affecting cargo owners.

Anozie Egole