Headlines
Jamoh seeks to integrate marine police into deep blue project
Eyewitness reporter
Jamoh, at a meeting with the police IG in Abuja, promised to extend the ongoing collaboration NIMASA is having with other security agencies under the deep blue project to the marine unit of the police in areas of capacity building and provision of patrol support.
While both parties identified and applauded the reduction in piracy attacks in the blue waters, which is also confirmed by notable international bodies including the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and International Maritime Bureau (IMB), they identified the need for enhanced policing of the nation’s brown waters.
“NIMASA is seeking close integration and collaboration of the Nigerian Marine Police into our recently launched waterways security architecture, Deep Blue Project, to achieve an all-encompassing outcome stretching from the blue waters where we already have the Nigerian Navy’s presence to the brown waters near the anchorage areas where the Nigerian Police statutorily have a role to stem the tide of insecurity and checkmate criminal activities against berthing ships and seafarers,” Jamoh emphasized.
While urging that all parties maximize the use of technology in monitoring the waters, Dr. Jamoh commended the ongoing integration of NIMASA’s Command, Control Computer Communication and Information System (C4i) located at the NIMASA Resource Center in Kirikiri with the Falcon Eye of Nigerian Navy and Nigeria Police’s i247 for easy coordination and intelligence sharing.
He described the Nigeria Police as a strategic partner whose operation and support are essential for sustaining and improving on the gains already recorded in the anti-piracy drive and safety of small crafts.
Jamoh added that the police are critical in helping to prosecute suspects arrested under the Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences (SPOMO) law.
The IGP commended NIMASA’s efforts under its present management and reiterated the resolve of the force to fight crimes all over the country, including in the territorial waters.
He described the Marine Police as a very important arm of the force, considering the strategic importance of the waters to the economic and social well-being of the country.
The meeting had in attendance other senior police officers including Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Garba Umar, who is Head of National Central Bureau of Interpol in Nigeria and was recently elected Vice President of Interpol for Africa.
Customs
Apapa Customs leads intelligence – based operation to intercept 1.8tonnes of Cannabis Sativa, N12.8b worth of expired pharmaceuticals products
Headlines
Nigerian ports gain global recognition as World Bank ranks Apapa, Tin Can among world’s most improved ports.
Gloria Odion, Maritime reporter
Nigeria’s ongoing port modernisation and infrastructure upgrade programme has earned international recognition, with two of the country’s busiest seaports—Apapa and Tin Can Island Ports—listed among the world’s top 20 most improved ports by the World Bank.
The recognition came in the World Bank’s 2025 Container Port Performance Index (CPPI), released in June 2026, which highlighted both Lagos ports in its global ranking of ports that recorded the most significant improvements in operational efficiency.
The CPPI provides a consistent, data-driven assessment of port performance worldwide by measuring the time vessels spend in port.
The index enables stakeholders to compare port efficiency across different countries and over time, while identifying areas of progress and operational challenges.
The latest ranking is a major endorsement of the Federal Government’s efforts to modernise Nigeria’s port infrastructure and enhance trade facilitation through reforms spearheaded by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
According to the Authority, the achievement further reinforces its contribution to sustaining Nigeria’s trade surplus by providing efficient port services that support growing import and export activities.
Nigeria has recorded consecutive annual trade surpluses since 2024, with the most recent figure standing at N7.54 trillion in the first quarter of 2026, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Reacting to the development, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Abubakar Dantsoho, attributed the achievement to the Federal Government’s investor-friendly policies and the ongoing port modernisation drive.
“With the investor-friendliness of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu providing the gravitas needed for increased investment to implement our port infrastructure and equipment modernisation drive, coupled with the unflinching support of the Honourable Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, we have all it takes to advance the fortunes of trade and boost the national economy,” Dantsoho stated.
The World Bank recognition is expected to further strengthen investor confidence in Nigeria’s maritime sector and support ongoing efforts to position the country’s ports as competitive gateways for regional and international trade.
Customs
Customs Zone ‘C’ Intercepts Smuggled Vegetable Oil Worth N403.5 Million
Funso OLOJO, Editor
The Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone ‘C’, Owerri, of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recorded a major anti-smuggling success with the interception of a large consignment of smuggled foreign vegetable oil valued at over N403.5 million.
The seizure followed strategic intelligence gathering and coordinated operations by officers of the Unit, leading to the interception of two trailers conveying the prohibited products.
Items seized include:
3,310 jerry cans (25-litre kegs) of Super Delicious vegetable oil;
10 jerry cans (10-litre kegs) of Super Delicious vegetable oil;
20 cartons of 5-litre sunflower vegetable oil; and
20 cartons of 3-litre sunflower vegetable oil.
According to the Unit, operatives intercepted one of the trucks carrying the consignment at about 10:00 p.m. on May 9, 2026, along the Ninth Mile axis of Enugu State, while the second truck was intercepted on June 7, 2026, along the Onitsha–Agbor Highway, following credible intelligence.
The Command disclosed that the seized goods have a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N403,491,000.
Speaking on the seizure, the Controller of FOU Zone ‘C’, Bashir Balogun, described the operation as a significant blow to economic saboteurs whose activities undermine local industries and the nation’s economy.
He noted that the illegal importation of foreign vegetable oil negatively affects domestic production, technology transfer, job creation, and foreign exchange earnings.
Balogun emphasized that the operation demonstrates the Service’s unwavering commitment to enforcing the provisions of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2022 and the Federal Government’s fiscal and protective policies prohibiting the importation of foreign vegetable oil.
He warned individuals and syndicates involved in smuggling to desist from such activities, stressing that the Nigeria Customs Service would continue to deploy intelligence-driven enforcement strategies to safeguard public health, national security, and the domestic economy.
The seized vegetable oil remains in the custody of the Service while investigations into the smuggling network continue.
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