The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, Mr. Adewale Adeniyi, has disclosed that the Federal Government approved import duty exemption certificates worth *₦34 trillion in 2025.
He described it as one of the major factors limiting the Service’s revenue generation.
Adeniyi made the disclosure on during an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja.[Day]
The Customs boss told the committee that government fiscal policies have continued to affect the NCS revenue capacity both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He explained that the *Import Duty Exemption Certificate, IDEC, scheme*, which was introduced in March 2020, accounted for the *₦34 trillion* in approvals recorded in 2025.
According to him, *nearly 60 per cent* of the total waivers covered duty-free importation of military hardware, a decision driven by Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Adeniyi listed other areas covered by government-backed duty exemptions to include:
Compressed Natural Gas, CNG, electric and hybrid vehicles– to support the energy transition agenda
Healthcare equipment and medical supplies – to improve access to health services
Industrial machinery manufacturing inputs – to boost local production
Food import intervention programmes– to address food inflation and shortages
While acknowledging the revenue impact, the Customs CG argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed only on revenue terms but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the Federal Government to establish *stronger monitoring mechanisms* to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended outcomes, including *lower consumer prices, increased local production, and improved healthcare access*.
The Senate Committee on Finance also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing.
Agencies absent included the *Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA; SMEDAN; Industrial Training Fund, ITF; and Federal Medical Centre, FMC, Jabi*.
The Chairman of the Committee, *Senator Sani Musa*, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face *severe sanctions* under Senate rules
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