Apapa port handles N26.3bn export products in Q3 - Customs

Abiola Seun |

A total of 378, 447 million tones of exports worth N26.3billion were shipped out of Nigeria through Apapa port between July to September 2020.

The Customs Area Controller of the Apapa Customs Command, Comptroller Muhammed Abba – Kura who gave the figures at a media briefing in Lagos on Wednesday said the exported goods have a free on board (FOB) value of $85,861,787.

According to him, the exported items included mineral resources, steel bars, agricultural products amongst others.

He added that the volume of export trade through the Apapa port stood at N78.6 billion with FOB value of.$257,003,965.00 from January to September, 2020.

In the area of revenue generation on imports, Comptroller Abba- Kura said the command collected the sum of N367.7 from January to September.

He said the figure represents 17 percent increase as against N313.5 billion collected within the same period in 2019 with a difference of N54.2 billion.

He noted that in the third quarter of 2020, the command collected and remitted the sum of N140 billion as Customs duty and other charges to the Federal government coffers.

He said the figure is 27 percent higher than the N110 billion recorded within same period in 2019.

“The difference recorded was made possible as a result of resilience of officers in ensuring that importers and agents are made to do proper declarations, adhere strictly to import/export guidelines in tandem with extant laws,” the Controller said.

On the area of smuggling, Comptroller Abba- Kura said the command made a seizure of total numbers of 328 containers of various goods with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) as against 37 containers seized in the same period in 2019 with a DPV of less than N3billion.

He said the seizures which include pharmaceutical products, foreign parboiled rice and second hand clothing among others were seized because of various infractions.

According to him, the infractions range from false declaration, non adherence to import/export guidelines and failure to comply with other extant regulations as enshrined in the Customs and Excise Management Act.

He added that level of compliance by importers is still within 40 to 60 percent which accounts for the increase in the number of seizures made.