The ongoing fluctuations in the Naira exchange rate have led to a concerning situation at the seaport, where importers have left thousands of fairly used vehicles abandoned.
Comptroller Dera Nnadi, the Nigeria Customs Service area controller for the Tin Can Island Command, revealed this while speaking with members of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA).
Nnadi decried the continuous decline in cargo throughput at the command.
He pointed out that the number of vehicles processed by the command had significantly decreased from 32,000 in 2018 to a mere 4,000 units in 2023, marking an 85% drop in just five years.
Dere stated that the Russia/Ukraine crisis had taken a toll on Importation in the country as bulk cargoes that come in from the country stopped coming in.
Additionally, Comptroller Nnadi cited other factors affecting trade and revenue generation at the command, including a decrease in vehicle imports and high exchange rates.
He expressed dissatisfaction with the trade policies of the former Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Godwin Emefiele, and pointed out how the war in Ukraine had disrupted various imports.
