Customs Win Commonwealth Gold Award For Community Impact, Sustainability

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has won the Commonwealth Environment and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Gold Award for its flagship Customs Cares initiative, earning international recognition for its community development and sustainability efforts.

The award was presented in Glasgow, Scotland, in recognition of organisations implementing measurable, sustainable and community-focused projects that advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Customs Cares was recognised for its far-reaching interventions in education, healthcare, food security and environmental sustainability across communities in Nigeria.

Receiving the award on behalf of the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, the Deputy Comptroller-General of Customs in charge of Enforcement, Investigation and Inspection, Timi Bomodi, described the honour as a significant milestone in the Service’s ongoing transformation.

He said the recognition validates the NCS’ commitment to creating value beyond its statutory responsibilities.

“This award is both humbling and inspiring. It affirms our belief that public institutions create their greatest value not only by fulfilling their statutory mandates, but by improving lives and strengthening the communities they serve,” Bomodi said.

Adeniyi attributed the achievement to the support provided under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, noting that the Customs Cares initiative has positively impacted more than 10 million Nigerians across 12 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

According to him, the programme has delivered school renovations, healthcare projects, clean water facilities, food support initiatives and the Green Borders Initiative aimed at promoting environmental sustainability.

“Beyond every classroom renovated, every borehole commissioned and every tree planted is something even more enduring; trust,” the Customs boss said.

Also speaking at the event, the Governor of Tharaka Nithi County in Kenya, Muthomi Njuki, stressed the need for stronger global partnerships to tackle climate change.

He said no nation could address the climate crisis alone, adding that accountability, innovation, collaboration and shared responsibility remain critical to building a greener, safer and more prosperous world.

The Comptroller in charge of Corporate Social Responsibility, Mbwiduffu Ibrahim, described the international recognition as an encouragement for the Service to deepen its community interventions.

“For a long time, we worked believing that the impact in our communities was reward enough. Today, this international recognition tells us that those efforts have not gone unnoticed,” she said.

The organisers said the Nigeria Customs Service received the award for its innovative Hub-and-Spoke Community Activation Model, noting that the recognition further strengthens the Service’s reputation as a modern Customs administration committed to revenue generation, trade facilitation, border security and sustainable development.