Comptroller Ajibola Odusanya, Area Controller of the Lilypond Export Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says processing of export at the command is totally seamless.
Odusanya said this at the Maritime Reporter Association of Nigeria (MARAN) roundtable held on Thursday in Lagos.
According to Odusanya, the command do not entertain any form of delay, even the duties of its officers at the gate are just to crosscheck and allow the truck to go. “The Lilypond export command is sanitized and automated to ensure export goods move seamlessly into the port.
“When customs took the lead to dedicate the command as solely for export, other agencies like the Department of State Security, Nationals Drug Law Enforcement Agency sent their officers to also work in the command.
“This ensures that all goods are certified fit for movement to the port and no customs officers and officers in another unit stops the truck from entering the port,” he said.
He added that the collapse of all the export terminals in the Lagos ports boosted export of goods in the country as the terminal processed the sum of $1.9b in 2024.
The customs boss added that even with the achievement recorded, the command was still experiencing challenges in the movement of goods into the port.
He decried the attitude of some driver who deliberately delay movement of goods into the port.
According to him, people see those trucks lined up and attribute the que to customs holding the trucks, but that is not correct.
“Some truck drivers deliberately stay until they have the Terminal Delivery Order before they can move. Some even park their trucks at the command and travel,” he said.
The Lilypond Customs Area Controller, Odusanya, also observed that some logistics challenges had been posed by haphazard movement of import-laden trucks obstructing access to export reserved areas.
However,Odusanya assured that the the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and APM Terminals are working to improve on the port internal traffic.
“The NPA has contributed significantly to export facilitation by creating the Electronic Call-up System (ETO) and Export Processing Terminals at the ports, but the internal port access roads will need more attention to clear up for seamless movement of export containers into the ports for outward shipping,” Odusanya said.
On exports being rejected by other countries, he noted that there was need to ensure that the goods get to the port on time, command working with the Standards Organization of Nigeria to ensure quality and standard of the goods.