President Urges Speedy Implementation of Key Trade Reform Initiative
President Bola Tinubu has directed that the National Single Window (NSW) project—Nigeria’s flagship trade facilitation platform—must become fully operational by the first quarter of 2026.
This directive was conveyed during the fifth meeting of the NSW Steering Committee held on Tuesday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. The President was represented by his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila.
Gbajabiamila, while delivering the President’s message, noted that the recently signed Tax Reform Acts underscored the urgency of accelerating Nigeria’s economic transformation agenda and achieving the administration’s $1 trillion GDP target.
“It’s important that we continue to stay focused on this project so that we meet our timelines and deliver the results the President expects,” he said.
“As you all are aware, this is one of the transformative initiatives of Mr. President, and we must ensure its effective and commendable implementation.”
The Chief of Staff emphasised that the NSW platform would simplify import and export procedures, boost trade revenue, enhance transparency, and improve Nigeria’s global business standing.
He urged all government agencies involved to refine their Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and redouble efforts toward meeting the Phase 1 implementation deadline.
“Since the last committee meeting held on April 8, 2025, I expect all stakeholders to have made significant progress on their assigned deliverables to ensure we go live with Phase 1 in Q1 2026 as scheduled,” Gbajabiamila added.
Also speaking at the meeting, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, described the progress made so far as encouraging, but called for a rapid shift from strategy to action.
“This is a complex yet transformational project. We must now move decisively into implementation and resolve the remaining hurdles in time for launch,” Edun said.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, also urged the committee to meet the deadline without fail, stressing the project’s importance to the administration’s economic growth agenda.
Dr. Zacch Adedeji, Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), expressed gratitude to President Tinubu for his consistent support and noted that the legal framework for the project had now been established.
“The reward for hard work is more work. We thank the President for his unwavering support. The single window is now backed by law, and we must stay focused on the task ahead,” Adedeji said.
Providing a progress update, the Director of the NSW Project, Tola Fakolade, revealed that all key milestones for the second quarter of 2025 had been successfully achieved, and platform customisation was now underway.
“We remain confident in our ability to meet the project timelines,” Fakolade assured.
Launched in April 2024, the National Single Window is a Federal Government initiative designed to digitise and streamline Nigeria’s trade processes by creating a unified electronic portal for all import and export activities.
The platform aims to cut trade costs, reduce delays at ports, enhance transparency, and drive economic growth by improving the ease of doing business across borders.
The NSW Steering Committee comprises representatives from the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the FIRS, and the Nigeria Customs Service.