Customs Partners NIIA, Launch Bashir Adeniyi Centre For International Trade And Investment.

By Helen Udo,Outlook Media ABUJA.

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), in collaboration with the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), has taken a significant step towards enhancing the country’s trade and investment landscape with the launch of the Bashir Adeniyi Centre for International Trade and Investment.

The centre, named after the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, was inaugurated in Lagos at the NIIA on Thursday, 24 October 2024.

The CGC expressed optimism about the centre’s potential, saying, “The establishment of this Centre comes at an opportune time as Nigeria is repositioning itself in the global trade environment. “As we continue to advance these initiatives, I envision that this Centre will evolve into a comprehensive national think tank focused on international trade and investment.”

In his welcome address, the Director General of NIIA, Professor Eghosa Osaghae, acknowledged that the centre will serve as a finishing school for senior customs officers.

“Today, we are very pleased as an Institute to announce to the world that we now have the Bashir Adeniyi Centre for International Trade and Investment. This centre will serve as a finishing school for senior officers in customs, offering senior executive courses that will be certificated. Because this is the NIIA, we will do this as a global affair, properly immersing the Nigeria Customs Service in the framework of the World Customs Organisation,” he stated.

The event featured a panel discussion with eminent Nigerians, including Donald Duke and Dr Chinyere Almona, examining the challenges and solutions for Nigeria’s economy regarding trade and investment.

Speaking to reporters about the benefits of the centre, the CGC emphasised its importance, saying, “We have a strong commitment to our mandate of trade facilitation, among other things, so we believe that the centre will be a centre of excellence in building capacity and, most importantly, creating awareness about the necessity of conducting international trade. Trade brings prosperity, and we hope that this centre will foster prosperity through trade.”

The CGC officially unveiled the centre and toured the facility.