The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has strengthened its collaboration with the Federal Fire Service (FFS) and Unilever Nigeria PLC through separate Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) aimed at improving emergency preparedness, protecting legitimate trade, combating counterfeiting and supporting Nigeria’s economic development.
The agreements were signed on August 27, 2026, at the NCS Headquarters in Abuja, as part of efforts to deepen inter-agency cooperation and strengthen public-private partnerships around national security, trade facilitation and consumer protection.
Speaking during the engagement with the FFS, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, described the agreement as a bold and strategic step towards strengthening cooperation between the two agencies.
Adeniyi said the MoU would support the shared responsibility of the NCS and FFS to protect lives, property and critical national assets, while improving fire safety standards across Customs facilities.
According to him, the agreement would facilitate faster emergency response, promote joint training and capacity building, as well as enhance information sharing on fire safety and emergency preparedness.
“I am very confident that this MoU will translate to practical actions that save lives, protect government assets, and enhance our collective capacity to respond to emergencies”, he said.
Also speaking, the Controller-General of the FFS, Olumode Adeyemi, described the agreement as a significant milestone in cooperation between the Fire Service and a sister government agency.
Adeyemi assured that the FFS would deploy its expertise and resources to strengthen the protection of Customs personnel, facilities and other assets against fire-related emergencies.
In a separate engagement with Unilever Nigeria PLC, Adeniyi said the partnership underscored the Customs Service’s commitment to closer collaboration with the private sector to address challenges affecting trade and industrial development.
He said the MoU would provide a stronger framework for tackling counterfeiting and illicit trade through intelligence sharing, product verification and the identification of suspected counterfeit goods.
The Customs boss explained that the agreement would also establish a structured channel for the exchange of real-time information on trademarks, product identification features, packaging and product samples.
He noted that information obtained through engagements with private-sector stakeholders frequently contributes to the formulation of Customs policies and operational decisions.
“Some of the takeaways we get from these engagements with the private sector influence the policies and decisions that we take”, Adeniyi said.
He commended Unilever for its sustained investment, innovation and employment generation in Nigeria, describing the company as an important partner in the country’s trade and industrial development.
The Managing Director of Unilever Nigeria PLC, Tobi Adeniyi, said the company’s relationship with Nigeria dated back to 1923, adding that more than 70 per cent of its raw materials had now been localised.
He said the company’s operations support about 15,000 direct and indirect jobs in Nigeria.
Tobi commended the NCS for its ongoing transformation, particularly its digitalisation initiatives, the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) programme and other measures aimed at facilitating legitimate trade.
He said previous engagements between Unilever and the Customs Service had already yielded practical results, including the application of lessons from training programmes involving more than 70 Customs officers.
The Unilever chief reaffirmed the company’s commitment to working with the NCS to combat counterfeiting and illicit trade, while expressing readiness to expand the partnership through further engagements across the country.
The separate agreements with the FFS and Unilever underscore the NCS’s growing emphasis on collaborative approaches to trade facilitation, security, safety and economic development.