By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has said it generated about N1.3 trillion in the first quarter of 2024, 112 per cent more than the N606.1 billion recorded in the first three months of 2023.
This was announced by the Comptroller General of Customs, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, during a press briefing on Wednesday.
He said that the service encountered a major challenge in the fluctuations of the exchange rate regime which he said has disrupted its activities, explaining that over 572 seizures were made with a duty paid value of N10 billion.
He said, “In the first quarter of 2024, the NCS demonstrated remarkable performance in revenue collection. Total revenue collected during this period amounted to N1,347,675,608,972.75. The collection for the first quarter represents a substantial increase of 122.35 per cent compared to the same period last year, where N606,119,935,146.67 was generated.
“When compared to the Federal government’s annual revenue target of N5.07 trillion for the NCS to collect in 2024, the target translates to a monthly revenue target of N423 billion.”
Mr Adeniyi also said N1.6 billion was generated through its electronic auction platform launched in the first quarter of the year.
Speaking on the challenges encountered due to the fluctuations of the exchange rate regime during the period under review, he said it made it difficult for operations.
He said, “In the last quarter, a total of 28 rates were directed by the CBN, ranging from N951.94 per Dollar in January 2024 to a peak of N1,662.35 per Dollar in February 2024. While a singular exchange rate of N951.94 per Dollar was maintained in January, February witnessed 15 different spot rates ranging from N951.94 per Dollar to N1,662.35 per Dollar.
“March saw a total of 13 different spot rates applied, ranging from N1,303.84 to N1,630.16. These fluctuations resulted in an average applied exchange rate of N1,314.03 per Dollar in the clearance of customs goods during the quarter.
“The repercussions of these fluctuating rates have sent concerning signals to our stakeholders, affecting and disrupting activities.”
Mr Adeniyi, however, expressed delight in the relative stability in the past days, adding that the FIRs, with the support of the Minister of Finance, Mr Wale Edun, have initiated periodic consultations with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to mitigate the potential impact of exchange rate fluctuations on import activities.