By Adeyemi David
The Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Wednesday urged key government agencies to ensure a structured rollout and seamless implementation of the National Single Window (NSW) project ahead of its inauguration on March 27.
Gbajabiamila made the call during a stakeholders’ meeting at the State House, describing the initiative as a major fiscal reform of the Bola Tinubu administration.
“We are about to launch yet another reform, fiscal reform by this administration, which in its nature will be very transformational. As the name suggests, it is a single national window as opposed to multiple single windows,” he said.
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The project, first launched nearly two years ago by President Tinubu, is designed to streamline trade processes, eliminate bottlenecks, and significantly reduce cargo clearance timelines.
Tola Fakolade, the NSW Project Coordinator, called on agencies to intensify support in the final 23 days before the “go-live,” explaining that the first phase would allow importers to submit documents once on a single platform for access by all relevant agencies.
“Documents will be submitted once, and shared with all relevant agencies without duplication,” Fakolade said.
He added that cargo manifests would be transmitted electronically to the relevant agencies, while a centralized risk management system would allow agencies to share cargo risk profiles in real time.
“If one agency identifies a risk, it will be visible to others, especially Customs, which has final clearance authority,” he explained.
The Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment to the project, describing it as “growth-enhancing and growth-enabling.”
Similarly, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, emphasized the need for strong inter-agency synergy, while the Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, and the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Wale Adeniyi, called for collective commitment from all stakeholders.
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Heads of NAFDAC, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, and other agencies also pledged support for a smooth transition.
Agencies represented at the meeting included the Nigeria Customs Service, Standards Organisation of Nigeria, Nigerian Ports Authority, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, and the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency.
The NSW Project is expected to simplify trade processes, eliminate duplication, and cut cargo clearance timelines from several weeks to 24–48 hours, enhancing efficiency, transparency, and ease of doing business for importers and exporters in Nigeria.
