The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has strengthened collaboration with six federal agencies to curb cross-border illicit financial flows, money laundering, corruption, drug trafficking, terrorism financing, and other related crimes.
The three-day engagement, held from October 27 to 29, 2026, was led by the Assistant Comptroller-General in charge of Headquarters, Muhammad Shuaibu. It focused on improving intelligence sharing and operational coordination among security and law enforcement institutions to better protect Nigeria’s economy and national security.
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The participating agencies included the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), and the National Counter-Terrorism Centre under the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
Speaking during the engagements, Shuaibu said the initiative was designed to strengthen inter-agency coordination in addressing emerging security and financial threats.
“The sole objective of this mission is to effectively detect and disrupt cross-border illicit financial flows. The measures include field visits to selected border stations to assess practical Customs control measures and engage with relevant agencies,” he said.
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The Chief Executive Officer of the NFIU, represented by the Chief Operating Officer, Intelligence Security Service Sector, Muhammed-Mustapha, commended the Customs Service for its sustained efforts in combating smuggling and reinforcing border security.
“When NFIU was created, NCS was the first to collaborate with us. No particular agency understands things better than how Customs does globally,” Mustapha said.
Also, the World Customs Organisation (WCO) Mentoring Team, led by Shahiduzzaman Sarkar, engaged the agencies on strategies for strengthening Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) efforts, while calling for closer cooperation with the Customs Service.
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During the discussions, participants identified communication gaps, bureaucratic bottlenecks, and database privacy concerns as major obstacles to effective collaboration. They also explored practical measures to address the challenges and improve institutional synergy.
The engagements concluded with the presentation of NCS awards and WCO certificates to participating agencies, reinforcing the Service’s commitment to sustained partnership in tackling financial crimes and safeguarding national security.
