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Nigeria’s Customs Service is calling for deeper cooperation among security and financial agencies as it steps up efforts to fight terrorism financing, money laundering, wildlife trafficking, and other cross-border crimes.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, made the appeal on 21 May 2026 during a study visit by participants of the National Defence College’s Operational Level Countering the Financing of Terrorism and Regional Security Course 2 in Abuja.
He said tackling modern-day financial crimes requires stronger intelligence sharing and closer coordination between agencies, noting that no single institution can handle the challenge alone.
Adeniyi also pointed to Nigeria’s removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list as a major achievement, saying it helped rebuild investor confidence and improve the country’s global financial reputation.
He explained that the earlier grey listing had real economic effects, including restrictions on Nigerian-issued bank cards abroad, which disrupted international transactions and affected the country’s image.
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According to him, the role of Customs has now gone beyond collecting revenue and guarding borders. He said the Service now plays a key role in detecting financial crimes such as trade fraud, illicit resource movement, and trafficking-related offences.
He also revealed ongoing collaboration with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), and airline operators to strengthen automated currency declaration systems.
“For us to get ahead of these criminals, we must continue to work together and subject our individual mandates to broader national security objectives,” he said.
Earlier, the Team Lead and Course Director Coordinator of the Counter Terrorism and Counter Insurgency/Countering the Financing of Terrorism unit at the National Defence College, Dr Adam Abdullahi, said terrorism cannot survive without funding.
He stressed the need for stronger coordination among agencies such as the Department of State Services (DSS), the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), the Armed Forces, Customs, and others involved in national security.
“The lifeline of terrorism is financing, and tackling it cannot be done by one institution alone,” he said.
In his presentation, Assistant Comptroller of Customs Mas’ud Salihu, who heads the Anti-Money Laundering/Counter-Terrorism Financing unit, said criminal groups are increasingly exploiting global trade networks to move money and illegal goods.
He called for stronger cooperation locally and internationally to improve enforcement of currency declaration rules and boost interceptions of arms, drugs, and other prohibited items.
