Tinubu endorses $3.1bn customs upgrade across Africa

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has thrown his weight behind a $3.1 billion customs modernisation initiative designed to improve trade facilitation across all 55 countries participating in the African Continental Free Trade Area.

Tinubu gave the backing on Tuesday in Abuja when he received Alhaji Saleh Ahmadu, a trade, revenue and security strategist, who visited the President as part of engagements around the continental customs project.

Ahmadu’s company, Bergmans Security Consultants and Supplies Limited, entered into a 20-year concession agreement with the AfCFTA Secretariat to implement the initiative in collaboration with AfriTrade CMP Limited.

The project is expected to overhaul customs processes, strengthen border management and make the movement of goods across African borders more efficient.

According to a statement issued by the company, Tinubu described the initiative as an important intervention that could contribute significantly to Africa’s economic integration and expansion of intra-African commerce.

The President also praised Ahmadu for developing and leading the project, stressing that effective customs administration would be critical to achieving the objectives of the continental free trade agreement.

Tinubu said the initiative had the potential to support economic growth by improving trade processes and reducing barriers to the movement of goods between African countries.

The project builds on Bergmans’ previous involvement in customs modernisation efforts in Nigeria, particularly its participation in the Nigeria Customs Service Modernisation Project.

That experience, according to the company, informed its subsequent expansion into a continental-level customs modernisation initiative under the AfCFTA framework.

Tinubu also acknowledged the company’s contribution to Nigeria’s trade and revenue ecosystem, saying its activities had supported the trade value chain while contributing to border security and revenue protection.

Ahmadu has spent about four decades working in security consultancy and systems acquisition, with experience spanning aviation, cybersecurity, intelligence and national security.

He has also established businesses in other sectors of the economy, with the company saying his ventures have contributed to employment and economic activity.

The AfCFTA customs project comes as African countries seek to remove barriers that continue to limit intra-African trade.

The free trade agreement, one of the African Union’s major Agenda 2063 initiatives, seeks to create a single continental market, expand trade among African countries and strengthen the continent’s position in the global economy.

The agreement originated from a decision adopted by African heads of state at the 18th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in January 2012.

Under the 20-year concession, the customs modernisation initiative will cover the entire 55-member AfCFTA bloc, potentially making it one of the continent’s largest coordinated efforts to upgrade customs and trade facilitation infrastructure.

The project is expected to play a key role in improving border procedures and supporting the free movement of goods as African countries work towards deeper economic integration.