CGC Adeniyi unveils INTERPOL Intelligence Hub to strengthen customs enforcement
Maureen Aguta
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has taken a significant step towards strengthening Nigeria’s border security and combating transnational crime with the deployment of an INTERPOL Data Centre at its National Headquarters in Abuja, providing officers with direct access to one of the world’s most extensive criminal intelligence networks.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, unveiled the facility during a demonstration at the Service’s headquarters, describing it as a landmark achievement in the NCS’s ongoing technology-driven transformation and intelligence-led enforcement strategy.
Adeniyi said modern Customs administration has moved beyond traditional revenue collection and regulatory compliance, stressing that advanced technology and intelligence sharing have become indispensable tools in tackling increasingly sophisticated cross-border crimes.
He noted that the Service’s collaboration with the international policing body would be further strengthened through the planned signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with INTERPOL, a move expected to institutionalise information sharing and enhance joint enforcement operations.
The Customs boss also showcased the Service’s home-grown digital trade platform, B’Odogwu, describing it as an innovative solution capable of driving seamless trade facilitation not only in Nigeria but also across Customs administrations on the African continent.
Speaking during the demonstration, INTERPOL Consultant, Chikwe Udensi, disclosed that the Abuja facility is the eighth INTERPOL Data Centre established in Africa.
According to him, the platform grants authorised Customs officers real-time access to more than 152 global criminal intelligence databases containing information on stolen vehicles, vessels, cargo, parcels and other transported assets.
Udensi explained that the system enables officers at Nigeria’s borders to instantly verify whether imported or exported goods, vehicles or other transport assets have been reported stolen anywhere in the world, thereby strengthening investigations, enhancing border security and supporting revenue generation through timely intelligence.
Also speaking, the Deputy Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of Enforcement, Investigation and Inspection, Timi Bomodi, said officers have already been trained to operate the new platform, which has been fully integrated into the Service’s Information and Communication Technology infrastructure.
Bomodi said the system would significantly improve cargo profiling, customs valuation and risk assessment by providing officers with accurate intelligence on the identity, description and origin of goods entering or leaving the country.
The deployment of the INTERPOL Data Centre marks another milestone in the Nigeria Customs Service’s drive to modernise border management, enhance intelligence-led operations and align its enforcement capabilities with global best practices in the fight against organised and transnational crime.