When Algorithms Clear Cargo: Nigeria Customs Bets on AI to Close the Revenue Gap
By Lod Onyeji _ Abuja, April 13, 2026 _ At the Ladi Kwali Hall of the Abuja Continental Hotel on Monday, a room of senior Customs officers, legislators, and technologists gathered for a curriculum that would have been speculative a decade ago: Artificial Intelligence for revenue generation, remittances, and reconciliation. The Nigeria Customs Service training marks a pivot from manual audits to algorithmic oversight, aimed at a persistent problem—leakage in a system that moves more than 90 percent of Nigeria’s trade. Comptroller-General Adewale Adeniyi framed the shift as inevitability. “Technology continues to evolve and plays an important role in strengthening our operations. It has also helped us better understand patterns in international trade,” he said. “We want to reap the benefits of Artificial Intelligence collectively.” The Service, he noted, sits inside a global value chain where speed and traceability decide competitiveness. Deputy Comptroller-General Kikelomo Adeola calle...
.jpeg)
_1.jpg)
%20(1).jpeg)
