SEREC Urges Reforms, not Abandonment of NSW
The Sea Empowerment and Research Centre (SEREC) has responded to commentaries questioning the National Single Window (NSW), “dual clearing” and parallel manual interventions at Nigerian ports.
SEREC made the position known in a statement signed and made available to newsmen on Thursday in Lagos.
The statement said constructive criticism and independent scrutiny were necessary for any major national reform to succeed and deliver results.
It urged distinction between genuine implementation gaps and sweeping conclusions that misrepresent the NSW architecture and statutory responsibilities.
The centre described the NSW as a necessary and strategic reform for Nigeria’s trade facilitation and global competitiveness.
It noted that Phase One challenges did not prove the policy was defective, but showed areas needing refinement and correction.
SEREC said the focus should be evidence-based diagnosis, integration and progressive optimisation, not uncritical celebration or outright rejection.
The group clarified that physical intervention after electronic release does not automatically amount to “dual clearing.”
It explained that Customs and other agencies retained legal powers for risk management, intelligence, security and compliance checks.
SEREC asked whether interventions were authorised, necessary, documented and risk-based, instead of repetitive and undocumented.
The centre condemned arbitrary interference with cargo, but warned against prohibiting lawful examinations in the name of facilitation.
It said Nigeria’s trade environment was not yet fully compliant and required a compliance audit before blaming all checks on corruption.
SEREC advocated a transparent Trade Compliance and Intervention Performance Framework to measure and reduce legitimate interventions over time.
The centre supported “One Cargo, One Digital Identity” with shared data for Customs and other government agencies.
It stressed that NSW success depended on interoperability, process harmonisation, data standards and intelligent risk assessment, not just portal connections.
SEREC said manual processes should be reduced intelligently, with minimum physical checks, especially for high-risk goods like arms and narcotics.
It cautioned against tagging all implementation delays as “institutional resistance” without evidence, urging investigation where wrongdoing was proven.
The centre called for a Phase-One lessons-learned review before expansion, and urged stakeholders to make the NSW faster, smarter and more transparent. #SEREC Urges Reforms, not Abandonment of NSW# SEREC Urges Review of NPA Tariff Increase
