The 2025 Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC) Conference officially opened on Thursday, November 20, 2025, with a strong call to senior officers to confront internal weaknesses undermining the Nigeria Customs Service’s operational efficiency.
Held at the Congress Hall of the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, the annual conference—this year themed “Building Future Partnerships: Lessons from the Customs-PACT Conference”—serves as a platform to evaluate performance and develop strategic plans for improved service delivery.
In his opening address, Comptroller-General of Customs Adewale Adeniyi emphasized the need to replicate internally the same level of discipline, coordination, and clarity that enabled the success of the recent Customs Partnership for African Cooperation in Trade (C-PACT) Summit.
Adeniyi reminded participants that just a day before, the Service had hosted a landmark continental meeting that brought together customs chiefs, private-sector leaders and representatives from across Africa.
“You can’t sustain external credibility without internal integrity,” he cautioned. “Turn the mirror inward and force honest discussions about what is working, what is failing, and what must change.”
Speaking further on the conference theme, the CGC said the objective was to distill the principles behind the international summit’s success—such as unified messaging, coordinated action, and disciplined execution—and embed them permanently in the Service’s culture.
He recalled that ahead of the C-PACT Summit, the Service held weekly coordination meetings for 16 consecutive weeks, aligning its agenda with AfCFTA expectations, resolving conflicts swiftly, and maintaining unity because “failure was not an option with the world watching.”
Adeniyi added that the two-day conference will feature panel sessions, thought-provoking presentations, and open dialogues designed to prioritize ideas over hierarchy and strengthen the Service’s institutional foundation.