The Federal Government’s drive to digitise trade procedures has processed 156,026 import licences, permits and certificates through the National Single Window platform within six months of its launch.
The platform, introduced on March 27, 2026, is designed to simplify documentation, payments and approvals for businesses involved in international trade.
Project Director of the National Single Window, Tola Fakolade, disclosed the figures at a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday, saying more services would be added as the government expands the system to cover exports.
According to Fakolade, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria accounted for 104,956 of the documents processed, while the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control handled 50,622.
He said more than 12,000 importers, customs agents, shipping lines, airlines and freight forwarders had registered on the platform, while over 8,000 users had received training. Five government agencies have been fully onboarded.
The system has also processed 3,964 air and sea cargo manifests, comprising 3,596 air cargo manifests submitted by 27 airlines and 368 sea manifests submitted by 56 shipping lines.
Fakolade said all airlines and air cargo companies had joined the platform, while 56 of the 88 shipping lines identified for onboarding had been integrated.
The platform recorded an uptime of 99.98 per cent during the period under review, according to the project director.
It currently supports the processing and approval of import licences, permits and certificates for NAFDAC, SON, the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service and the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency. Relevant payments can also be made through the system.
Director of Operations Peter Ekunkoya said agencies already integrated into the platform no longer operated parallel paper-based processes.
He said the centralised system was intended to improve transparency and help traders identify delays in the processing of their documents.
As part of efforts to standardise trade documentation, Fakolade said the project team was working with relevant agencies, including the Nigeria Customs Service, to harmonise Harmonised System codes.
The codes are expected to be available on the National Single Window and the B’Odogwu customs system by November 2026.
The Nigerian Ports Authority and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency are also being onboarded for the Ships Entry Notice process, scheduled to go live on November 16.
Fakolade said the project had entered its second phase, scheduled for delivery between the fourth quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027.
The phase will extend the platform to export licences, permits and certificates, export manifests, Forms NXP and NCX, Import Duty Exemption Certificates, and permits for imports and exports involving free trade zones.
The first batch of agencies scheduled for onboarding in the fourth quarter of 2026 includes the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment’s FPIS and Registered Exporter System, SON, NAFDAC and the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture.
The second batch, planned for the first quarter of 2027, is expected to include the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Customs Service, NAQS, the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development, the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority and the Federal Ministry of Finance.
Fakolade said assessments of existing processes and technology readiness, future-state design and system customisation had been completed for the second phase. User acceptance testing, pilot testing and end-user training are expected to follow.
The third phase, projected for the third and fourth quarters of 2027, will introduce additional services, including customs declaration submissions, Form M applications and approvals, oil and gas-related processes, advanced risk analytics and a Trade Visualisation System.
The government expects the phased expansion to bring more trade-related services onto a single digital platform, allowing businesses to submit documents and make payments electronically while improving coordination among agencies involved in cross-border trade.
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