The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Customs Administration of Benin Republic on Monday jointly launched the deployment of Interconnected System for the Management of Goods in Transit (SIGMAT)platform, aimed at boosting regional trade.
Mr Adewale Adeniyi, the Comptroller General of Customs (CGC) and the Director General of Benin Customs Administration, Mme Adidjath Hassan Zanouvii, unveiled the system during a press conference held at the Seme-Krake Joint Border Post.
Speaking during launching, Adeniyi said that the implementation of the platform was designed to connect both services, aiming at removing some of the challenges faced by operators.
Adeniyi noted that the system is resilient and intended to eliminate bottlenecks linked to international trade, adding that the platform had already worked effectively in seven other countries along the corridor.
He expressed optimism about the platform’s success, saying that officers from the service had been trained to manage the platform with support from critical stakeholders.
“The SIGMAT platform will foster cooperation between the two customs organizations, adding that it has the capacity to integrate with the B’ODOGWU system in Nigeria.
“I want to assure the stakeholders and other government agencies that the service will ensure proper enlightenment and sensitization about the newly launched platform for further implementation.
“This platform will facilitate the movement of goods along the Lagos-Abidjan corridor,” he said.
Also speaking on the platform, the Director General of Benin Customs Administration said that the implementation of the system would collectively address cross-border issues affecting both customs administrations.
“The SIGMAT connectivity between the two countries marks a major milestone in the collective pursuit of seamless trade integration and regional economic transformation across West Africa.
“I am sure you have heard some of the historical context of this project, which aims to digitalize and harmonize customs transit operations across our member states.
“The concept was conceived over a decade ago, and the electronic platform was designed to achieve these objectives. Primarily, we want to improve the visibility of goods in transit.
“We want to combat diversion and fraud along the Nigeria-West corridor and also use the platform to foster inter-agency coordination and collaboration between us.
“For our stakeholders, we want to simplify procedures at the borders and, by doing so, reduce delays,” she said.
She said that the platform would ensure that trade fosters revenue and prosperity and encourage trade facilitation between our two countries.
“The implementation has already started with deployments in several ECOWAS member states, with the support and assistance of the ECOWAS Commission and the German Development Cooperation Agency,” she said.
“For us, SIGMAT represents our strategic ambition to align with regional digital customs standards and to modernize the globalization of our trade portfolio.
“We must implement a robust stakeholder engagement strategy to ensure that we include not only our economic operators but also other government agencies involved in this process.
“We look forward to strengthening bilateral communication mechanisms to ensure timely technical engagement between our agencies and institutions,” she said.
