Nigeria and Benin Republic are working to integrate their Customs systems to reduce delays at the Sèmè-Kraké border and facilitate faster movement of legitimate goods and travellers along the Nigeria-Benin trade corridor.
The proposed real-time data exchange system will allow the two Customs administrations to share declarations, manifests, transit information, risk profiles and enforcement alerts.
The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed this on Friday during a joint assessment of the Sèmè-Kraké One-Stop Border Post.
Adeniyi said although the two Customs administrations operate from the same facility, they currently lack an integrated platform for real-time information sharing.
“Two administrations presently work under one roof, but they do not work on one system. There is still no seamless real-time exchange of declarations, manifests, transit information, risk profiles or enforcement alerts between us,” he said.
He said the NCS had proposed linking the two administrations and that work was underway on a common data exchange framework, drawing from the countries’ experience with regional transit systems.
Under the proposed arrangement, a declaration lodged on one side of the border would be accessible to the other administration in real time.
The system would also allow transit consignments to be tracked from origin to destination, while risk profiles and enforcement alerts generated by either administration could be transmitted to its counterpart for timely action.
Adeniyi said the initiative formed part of efforts to assess the operational readiness of the One-Stop Border Post, review existing border processes and facilities, and strengthen secure cross-border interoperability.
He described the Sèmè-Kraké crossing as a major trade gateway on the Abidjan-Lagos Corridor, which he said carries about 70 per cent of the sub-region’s transit trade.
According to him, the crossing is one of the busiest land borders in West Africa and operates round the clock throughout the year.
“A corridor of that weight does not fail quietly,” Adeniyi said, stressing that delays at the border were multiplied across thousands of consignments and tens of thousands of travellers and eventually reflected in the prices of goods across the region.
“Every hour lost at this gate is multiplied across thousands of consignments and tens of thousands of travellers, and is paid for in the price of goods in markets from Cotonou to Lagos,” he said.
He added that every hour saved at the border could translate into savings across the region.
The Customs chief also highlighted the importance of informal cross-border trade, particularly the role of women. He said women account for more than 70 per cent of informal cross-border traders across Africa.
Adeniyi added that about 22 per cent of Benin’s informal exports were destined for Nigeria, underscoring the importance of the corridor to regional trade and livelihoods.
The Director-General of Benin Customs, Raouf Malehossou Aboudou, commended Adeniyi for efforts to strengthen Customs cooperation and cross-border trade between the two countries.
Aboudou said the joint One-Stop Border Post would reduce the burden associated with cross-border movement for traders, travellers and other users while improving Customs efficiency.
He said closer integration between the two administrations would also strengthen coordinated risk management, which he described as a core principle of the World Customs Organisation.
The Benin Customs chief noted that Adeniyi had visited Zimbabwe to study the operation of One-Stop Border Posts.
“To have a joint border post reduces stress for stakeholders, travellers and everyone that uses it. It gives birth to coordinated risk management, which is one of the core principles of the WCO,” he said.
The proposed integration is expected to strengthen the Sèmè-Kraké One-Stop Border Post by harmonising procedures, reducing duplication and enabling faster and more transparent movement of legitimate goods and travellers between Nigeria and Benin.
