Senate Establishes NCS Board and Passes Bill To Re-Enact Customs Act

The passage of the bill followed the consideration of a report by the Committee on Customs, Excise, and Tariffs.

Chairman of the Committee, Sen. Francis Alimikhena in his presentation, said the bill amongst others, seeks to assist the Nigeria Customs Service administration in driving economic growth and trade facilitation.

He said the bill when signed into law would make the NCS a legal entity under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning with a Board to serve Nigerians and facilitate international trade.

According to him, the bill which has 283 clauses, also seeks to bring the Customs and Excise Management Act in line with modern-day Customs operations globally.

“It will also provide for the NCS a consolidated single legal reference document instead of multiple enactments,’’ he said.

He said that the bill makes provisions for the use of electronic documents, electronic payments, and other information technology that are applicable to modern Customs administration.

The bill was eventually passed by the chamber after a clause-by-clause consideration.