World Bank has said that Nigeria’s customs revenue could rise by 66% if federal government eliminates import bans and arbitrary tariff deviations.
Gatekeepers News reports that this follows criticism from United States Trade Representative (USTR), which in April 2025 condemned Nigeria’s ban on 25 items, arguing that it limits market access for American exporters.
Reacting in its May 2025 Nigeria Development Update, the Bank warned that current trade policies including high tariffs and import restrictions, distort market prices, fuel petrol smuggling, and weaken customs enforcement, costing the country billions in potential revenue.
The report emphasised that these restrictive policies not only reduce customs collections but also inflate consumer prices, encourage evasion, and disproportionately affect poorer households.
It said, “Lifting them could increase current customs revenues by 66 percent, contributing to the ongoing fiscal adjustment.”
World Bank recommended leveraging the now more competitive exchange rate to reshape trade policy in favor of economic growth and job creation. It noted that Nigeria’s average tariff rate is double the sub-Saharan African average, with many goods outright banned or subject to non-tariff barriers.
According to the report; local firms need greater access to imported intermediate goods to increase domestic production and competitiveness in global markets. Aligning Nigeria’s tariff structure with the ECOWAS Common External Tariff (CET), particularly on food items, would improve household welfare and reduce inflationary pressures.
The bank said, “ Import bans increase prices by an estimated 5.8 percent on average in Nigeria, particularly for products more intensely consumed by poorer households, such as food and medical products.”
