The Murtala Muhammed Area Command of the Nigeria Customs  Service (NCS) under the leadership of Comptroller Michael Toyin Awe, has generated a total sum of N144,202, 566, 975.00k from customs duties and other charges, between January and October 2024.
Meanwhile, the revenue collected in the same period in 2023 stood at N74,286,707,443.00, showing a progressive difference of N69,915,859,531.00k, depicting 94 per cent increase.
The Customs Area Controller said the efforts to combat illicit trade has yielded impressive results, with total Duty Paid Value (DPV) of seized items amounting to N3,322,239,355.00 between July to October 2024.
The seized items, according to the report, contravened some of the provisions of the extant laws as enshrined in the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.
These items included 23 pieces of walkie talkies, 175 pieces of military helmets, 50 pieces of drones, 10 packs of Canadian cannabis sativa, 250 pieces of live turtles, 7 packages of 200mg & 225mg of tramadol hydrochloride, 1.5kg of pangolin scales, and 0.2kg of porcupine pins.
He attributed this achievement to enhanced trade facilitation, improved stakeholder compliance, effective law enforcement, strategic resource deployment, interagency collaboration, efficient cargo clearance and intelligent risk management strategies.
He said, in order to boost revenue collection, facilitate legitimate trade and curb smuggling, the Command has implemented initiatives such as streamlined clearance procedures, enhanced cargo inspection and examination, improved intelligence gathering and sharing, collaboration with other security agencies, and regular stakeholder engagements.

In order to move forward, he noted that the Command will enhance trade facilitation measures, strengthen anti-smuggling efforts, improve stakeholder engagement and leverage on technology for efficient operations.

Awe expressed appreciation to the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, and his management team for their unwavering support in carrying out official tasks effectively.

In a similarly development, he commended officers and men of the command for their hard work and dedication towards achieving this great feat.

He also recognized the critical stakeholders, including importers, exporters and clearing agents, for their cooperation and compliance to extant laws.

The Federal Government, through the management of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has assured of providing the technical guidance and allied support necessary for operationalisation of Burutu Port in Delta State.
Managing Director/CEO of the NPA, Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, gave the assurance when he received the Chairman and Executives of Akewa Colmar Terminal Limited (ACTL), the concessionaire of Burutu Port last Thursday at the NPA headquarters in Lagos.
Speaking during the meeting, Dantsoho said, “to deepen our competitiveness, we must deepen our capacity to attract and retain huge investments in our Port infrastructure.
“I say this in view of the transformational developments being witnessed in the maritime countries along the coast of West and Central Africa.
“Whilst we are working assiduously to optimize the Warri channel, we cannot allow the potential of the navigable waters around the Delta Port clusters which can bolster Nigeria’s solid minerals export go to waste.
“We, therefore, set to progress this auspicious project to its next milestone once the report of the technical team is submitted in two weeks”.
Located at the coastal end of the River Niger with linkages to other ports along the Niger/Benue Rivers, Burutu Port was Commissioned in 1887 as the first modern Port in Africa, and was the main logistics port for British trade with Nigeria.
The Port became moribund after the civil war but was given a Master Concessionaire status by the NPA pursuant to approvals from the Infrastructure, Concession & Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and Federal Executive Council (FEC).

Rising from a three-day workshop in the Republic of Congo, the Maritime Organisation of West and Central Africa (MOWCA) has been mandated by member states and experts to commence a processs of sensitisation for uniform application of Regional Maritime Fund policy effective January 2026.
MOWCA’s Secretary General, Dr. Paul Adalikwu, was mandated to lead an awareness campaign to the 25 member countries throughout 2025, in order to ensure the full implementation of the Regional Maritime Fund (RMF) from January 1, 2026
Member countries recalled that the RMF mechanism, approved by the MOWCA General Assembly in 1999, aimed  to enhance maritime sector financing across the countries and facilitate the Maritime Administration’s ability to implement national policies and support regional projects on an 80-20 basis on $3 per metric tonne of cargo carried.
It is to be generated through a levy on shipowners operating in the West and Central African subregion as a self-financing model that allocates 80% of collected funds for the country of transaction and 20% for MOWCA
Speaking on the development, Dr. Adalikwu described sustainable maritime funding as a prerequisite to building a verile blue economy capable of supporting national development
According to the SG, not funding the maritime sector but expecting gains from it is like having a perfect automobile without fueling but wishing it takes you to your destination
He added that the gap for the many years  MOWCA countries didn’t do funding according to the extant rule caused a setback in maritime development, but expressed optimism in overcoming the challenges where there is cooperation and support.

Adalikwu listed derivable gains from the funding, when implemented, to include improvement in maritime infrastructure; rapid development of maritime expertise through training and retraining; proper harnessing of marine endowments for environmentally friendly and sustainable economic activities; evolving a development of blue economy across member countries in line with international best practice.

The MOWCA SG lauded member states that have been contributing to the financial sustenance of the organisation and urged others to emulate them.

He added that African countries with marine endowments and dry ports capabilities needed to give priority attention to multimodal transportation for ease of connectivity and movement of goods and services.

He stated that the MOWCA Secretariat is willing to support in technical collaboration and easy access to experts within the region for transfer of knowledge and training.

“The maritime industry is the driving force of global commerce and should not be given a backstage position during national budgeting by countries endowed as coastal states.

“It’s time African countries build capacities, acquire technology and ensure transfer of knowledge from the old to younger generation of maritime professionals and experts.

“As various member states push for their tailor made cabotage regime, I believe we can create a regional cabotage where businesses  citizens of MOWCA member countries enjoy priority opportunities ahead of foreigners as a way of creating a flourishing blue economy”, he said.