Customs reforms at risk without continuity, SEREC warns

THE Sea Empowerment and Research Center (SEREC) has raised concerns over the future of reforms in the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), warning that failure to sustain ongoing initiatives could reverse hard-earned gains and weaken institutional progress.

The Centre stressed that reform efforts within the NCS must be consolidated and protected from disruption, particularly in the face of leadership transitions.

Head of Research at SEREC, Mr Eugene Nweke, said although the service has recorded notable progress in digital modernisation, revenue generation, enforcement, and stakeholder engagement, sustaining the gains remains uncertain without firm institutional safeguards.

SEREC declared that the absence of continuity poses a threat to long-term success, insisting that reforms must be protected from policy reversals and leadership inconsistencies.

“The true test of reform is not initiation, but continuity”, Nweke noted.

The centre anchored its position on the doctrine introduced in 2014 by the late former Comptroller-General, Abdullahi Dikko Inde, who advocated institutional legacies that outlive individual administrations.

According to SEREC, more than a decade after that vision was articulated, its relevance has only grown stronger, particularly in a system where policy reversals have historically undermined progress.

The research body described the Customs Service as a “relay institution”, where successive leaderships are expected to build on inherited reforms rather than discard them.

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It warned that reforms driven by personalities, instead of institutional frameworks, remain vulnerable and unsustainable.

On leadership, SEREC underscored the importance of maintaining a professional, career-driven structure within the Service, noting that past deviations from the model resulted in operational disruptions and policy inconsistencies.

The centre, however, acknowledged the efforts of the current Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, commending his management team for advancing modernisation and aligning with principles of reform continuity.

SEREC emphasised that the efforts should be institutionalised to ensure they endure beyond the present administration.

The brief also highlighted the role of the next generation of Customs officers, describing them as central to sustaining reforms and preserving institutional integrity.

Officers, it noted, must be repositioned as custodians of legacy, drivers of reform continuity, and stewards of professionalism in national service.

In its recommendations, SEREC called for urgent legislative backing for key Customs reforms, acceleration of the National Single Window project, and the establishment of independent reform audit mechanisms.

It also advocated stronger institutional memory systems and deeper digital transparency to enhance accountability.

Beyond the Customs Service, the Centre urged that the reform model be replicated across other government agencies, particularly in areas of policy continuity, digital transformation, and institutional governance.

SEREC maintained that Nigeria cannot afford a return to policy inconsistency or institutional experimentation, warning that the consequences could undermine national economic stability. It reiterated the need to safeguard and transmit reform gains across generations.