Foreign Firms Control Nigeria’s Freight Sector, Threaten Local Businesses — Farinto

A former acting National President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Dr Kayode Farinto, has raised concerns over the growing dominance of foreign companies in Nigeria’s freight forwarding and customs brokerage industry, warning that the trend threatens indigenous participation, job creation, capital retention and national security.

Farinto spoke while presenting a position paper at a House of Representatives Breakfast Session organised to gather policy recommendations for legislative reforms aimed at strengthening the country’s economy.

He called on the National Assembly to enact legislation that would reserve strategic areas of freight forwarding and customs brokerage for indigenous operators, similar to the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act.

According to him, Nigeria’s logistics sector has gradually shifted towards foreign control, leaving local freight forwarders increasingly excluded from major opportunities, particularly in project cargo handling and customs brokerage.

Farinto argued that freight forwarding and customs brokerage should be treated as strategic national services because of their impact on trade, revenue generation and security.

He said a local content framework for the industry would increase Nigerian participation, create employment opportunities and prevent the repatriation of revenues generated from the sector.

“If freight forwarding is left in the hands of indigenous Nigerians, it will create employment opportunities and ensure that revenues generated from the business are retained within the country rather than being repatriated abroad,” he said.

Foreign firms dominate project cargoes

Farinto alleged that foreign companies now control about 90 per cent of project cargoes entering Nigerian ports, leaving indigenous operators with limited access to high-value contracts.

“I cannot remember the last time an indigenous freight forwarder handled a major project cargo in Nigeria. Today, almost everything is controlled by foreign companies,” he said.

He also criticised the expansion of international shipping firms into freight forwarding and customs brokerage, saying they have moved beyond cargo transportation into end-to-end logistics services that directly compete with Nigerian operators.

Using Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) as an example, Farinto said foreign companies now manage cargo movements from origin to final destination through door-to-door logistics arrangements, reducing opportunities for local freight professionals.

Security risks, capital flight concerns

Beyond economic implications, Farinto warned that excessive foreign participation in customs brokerage could create security vulnerabilities because operators have access to sensitive trade documents, cargo manifests and import information.

He said Nigeria must be cautious about allowing foreign interests to dominate strategic areas of the supply chain, especially amid challenges such as insecurity, arms trafficking and other transnational crimes.

Farinto rejected suggestions that Nigerian freight operators lack the technical capacity to handle complex logistics operations, insisting that the country has developed enough expertise.

“There is no capacity problem in Nigeria. If countries like Ghana and Benin Republic can successfully empower indigenous operators, there is no reason Nigeria cannot achieve the same thing,” he said.

Calls for port reforms

On the renewal of port concession agreements, Farinto urged the Federal Government to adopt a performance-based approach, noting that indigenous terminal operators such as Port & Cargo Handling Services Limited and ENL Consortium had invested significantly in port infrastructure and cargo-handling equipment.

He argued that local companies reinvest their earnings within Nigeria through job creation and business expansion, unlike foreign operators who, according to him, often repatriate profits.

Farinto also criticised the operations of some foreign terminal operators, alleging that some handle cargo volumes beyond their terminal design capacity, contributing to congestion, truck gridlock and inefficiencies at Nigerian ports.

He urged lawmakers to introduce policies that would strengthen indigenous participation in strategic areas of the maritime sector.

“The future of Nigeria’s freight forwarding industry depends on deliberate legislative protection. If we fail to act now, we risk surrendering a strategic sector of our economy entirely to foreign interests,” he warned.