In a landmark development, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking to forge a stronger partnership with the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) to address the country’s security challenges and enhance operational efficiency.
To actualize this significant initiative, the Comptroller General of Customs (CGC), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, held a collaborative meeting with the DIA recently at the NCS Corporate Headquarters in Abuja.
The CGC, while speaking, noted that the primary objective of the collaboration is to maintain and deepen the existing relationships between NCS and the DIA.
Adeniyi restated NCS believe in partnership, adding that cooperation with other Customs administrations and government agencies is a fundamental aspect of growth.
He underscored capacity building and security projects particularly as the major areas of focus for collaboration.
“The major objective of this delegation is to maintain and deepen the relationship between the Nigeria Customs Service and the DIA.
“For the records, the Nigeria Customs Service believes in collaboration. We believe that we can draw strength from collaborating with other government agencies,” he stated.
The CGC noted that the Service has extensively worked with the Armed Forces Command and Staff College to rebuild the capacity of officers in the Nigeria Customs Command and Staff College.
“Additionally, I’ve personally worked on collaborative security projects in the past, such as the Security Impact Collaboration,” he added.
Adeniyi expressed his desire for closer partnership with the DIA, particularly in the area of sharing robust intelligence to enable the two agencies address significant security challenges across the border areas and enhance the efficiency of Customs officers.
“It is our strong desire to deepen this kind of partnership to ensure that we benefit more from it,” he said.
For his part, Air Vice Marshal Samuel Chinda, Deputy Chief of Defence Intelligence who represented Chief of Defence Intelligence, Major General Emmanuel Parker, described the collaboration with the NCS as integral to their successes in combating border threats.
Speaking on the need to include officers in various intelligence training, AVM Chinda recalled how the Nigerian Armed Forces Command and Staff College contributed to enhancing the proficiency of Customs Officers.
“We are here to reinvigorate these relationships for future collaborations. Particularly, the Defence Intelligence Agency is open to partnerships in training and operations with the Nigeria Customs Service,” he said.
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