The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recorded a major international achievement as its flagship Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme, Customs Cares, won the prestigious Commonwealth Environment and CSR Gold Award in Glasgow, Scotland.
The award, presented over the weekend, recognises customs administrations and organisations implementing measurable, sustainable and community-driven initiatives that advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to a statement by the National Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Assistant Comptroller Abdullahi Maiwada, Customs Cares earned the honour for its far-reaching interventions in education, healthcare, food security and environmental sustainability across Nigeria.
Receiving the award on behalf of the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, the Deputy Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of Enforcement, Investigation and Inspection, Timi Bomodi, described the recognition as a defining milestone in the Service’s ongoing transformation.
“This award is both humbling and inspiring. It affirms our belief that public institutions create their greatest value not only by fulfilling their statutory mandates but also by improving lives and strengthening the communities they serve,” Bomodi said.
Speaking on the significance of the award, Adeniyi attributed the achievement to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He disclosed that the Customs Cares initiative has positively impacted more than 10 million Nigerians across 12 states and the Federal Capital Territory through school renovations, healthcare interventions, clean water projects, food support programmes and the Green Borders Initiative.
“Beyond every classroom renovated, every borehole commissioned and every tree planted is something even more enduring—trust,” the Comptroller-General said.
Also speaking at the event, the Governor of Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya, Muthomi Njuki, stressed the importance of global collaboration in tackling climate change.
“No country can solve the climate crisis alone. Through accountability, partnership, innovation and shared responsibility, we can build a greener, safer and more prosperous world,” he said.
The Comptroller in charge of Corporate Social Responsibility, Mbwiduffu Ibrahim, said the international recognition would further motivate the Service to deepen its community development efforts.
“For a long time, we worked believing that the impact in our communities was reward enough. Today, this international recognition tells us that those efforts have not gone unnoticed,” she said.
The organisers noted that the Nigeria Customs Service received the award for its innovative Hub-and-Spoke Community Activation Model, adding that the recognition reinforces the Service’s reputation as a modern customs administration committed to revenue generation, trade facilitation, border security and sustainable development.
