By Oluwakemi Kindness
The Nigeria Customs Servce has launched a four-week mentoring programme with the World Customs Organisation (WCO) to strengthen its capacity to detect and disrupt illicit financial flows.
Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, said during the training in Abuja, that effective collaboration among government agencies was critical to combating money laundering and terrorist financing.
According to him, progress by one institution must be matched by improvements in others to ensure a coordinated response to financial crimes.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by Customs spokesperson, Abdulahi Maiwada, Adeniyi recalls reforms by government agencies that contributed to Nigeria’s exit from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list in 2025.
He expressed confidence that Customs officers would cooperate with the WCO delegation and learn from other Customs administrations.
“Competent officers who have passion for the job will give you all the cooperation to ensure we learn from other Customs administrations regarding what we are doing and how we can do better,” he said.
The WCO mentoring mission was inaugurated at the NCS headquarters in Abuja on Monday. Funded by the United States Department of State, the programme runs from October 18 to November 13, 2026.
The mission, themed “Strengthening Nigeria Customs Service Capabilities to Effectively Detect and Disrupt Illicit Financial Flows,” brings together WCO experts Jorge Lasmar, Lisa Vallese and Laurent Szymkowiak.
Speaking on behalf of the delegation, Lasmar said the exercise was designed to build the Service’s capacity rather than assess its operations.
“The mission is not an assessment of Customs operations, but an engagement aimed at further strengthening the capacity of the Nigeria Customs Service,” he said.
Lasmar thanked the Service for its cooperation and said the team would submit a comprehensive report at the end of the exercise. The programme is expected to improve officers’ expertise and strengthen inter-agency cooperation against illicit financial flows.
Edited by Julian Osamoto
