LAGOS: The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) has said the establishment of the Aba Mega Mall, designed to serve as an open market retail system to accelerate mall infrastructure, will help prevent congestion at the main ports, guarantee faster turnover for economic operators and reduce cost of doing business.
Speaking at a road show organised by the Greenfield Assets Limited Nigeria in London on Monday, the Comptroller-General of Nigerian Customs Service, Mr. Abdullahi Dikko, stated that the citing of Aba Mega Mall in Aba, Abia State, would further accelerate economic growth and create job opportunities in the state.
Dikko, who was represented by the Deputy-Comptroller of Customs, Mr. Wale Adeniyi, said though such facilities currently exist in Lagos, Kaduna, Kano and other locations proposed by the Nigerian Shippers Council as Inland Container Depots (ICD), however the Aba Mega Mall occupies a strategic area of customs operation.
“When I first learnt about the magnitude of this project, the first thing that came to my mind is the opportunity it presents for improved compliance among our stakeholders. For any customs administration in the world, voluntary compliance helps to enhance efficient and transparent service to stakeholders,” Adeniyi said.
However, the general manager of Greenfield Assets Limited, Mr. Paul Obanua, at the event, said the roadshow was designed to attract both international and local patronage of the mall.
He said the first phase of the mall is expected to be inaugurated shortly after the general elections.
According to him, his organisation was committed and inspired by the mission
to renew urban cities, regenerate communities, empower lives and create more than 30,000 jobs in the state.
“We strive to make a difference and create value for our investors, clients and the community. We have been a key player in the Nigerian economy in the past 10 years and have monitored the unfolding opportunities of the frontier growth markets,” Obanua said.
He said because they identified that infrastructure development would increase economic growth, they have been encouraged to pioneer the leapfrogging of Africa’s historical open market retail system to smart mall infrastructure.
