The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it generated N7.281tn in revenue in 2025, marking one of its strongest financial performances in recent years.
Bashir Adeniyi, comptroller-general of customs, disclosed the figures in Abuja on Monday while addressing participants at the 2026 World Customs Day celebration.
Adeniyi said the performance surpassed the service’s approved revenue benchmark by N697bn, translating to more than a 10 per cent positive variance.
He explained that the 2025 outturn also reflected a year-on-year growth of about 19 per cent when compared with the N6.1tn realised in 2024.
“Ladies and gentlemen, even as we protect society and reform procedures, we must also sustain the financial health of the state,” he said.
“I am pleased to report that in 2025, the Nigeria Customs Service collected a total of N7.281tn, exceeding the target of N6.584tn with a positive variance of N697 billion, representing a growth of over 10 per cent against the target.”
Providing a breakdown, the customs chief said collections rose by roughly N1.18tn from the previous year, underscoring the scale of the improvement.
“When compared to 2024 collections, total revenue rose from N6.1tn to N7.28tn, an increase of approximately N1.18tn, or about 19 per cent year-on-year,” Adeniyi said.
He cautioned against interpreting the announcement as self-adulation, insisting the figures demonstrated the effectiveness of ongoing reforms.
“We present these figures not as self-congratulation, but as evidence that reform is yielding tangible outcomes,” the comptroller-general said.
He stressed that the revenue growth was not achieved through excessive enforcement or measures that could hamper legitimate commerce.
“The gains came not from arbitrary enforcement or the burdening of legitimate traders, but from improved compliance, better data use, digital tools, and disciplined enforcement,” Adeniyi said.
“More importantly, this performance was achieved while deepening collaboration with the private sector and upholding facilitation commitments.”
Adeniyi added that the service continued to align revenue generation with its trade facilitation responsibilities under regional and international trade frameworks.
The NCS is one of the federal government’s key non-oil revenue agencies, with responsibilities spanning revenue collection, trade facilitation, border security and anti-smuggling operations.