Bayo Akomolafe 
Huge expenditure on used vehicle importation valued at N1.39 trillion in the last two years has affected import by 60 per cent in the last six months. It was learnt that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s customs duty of N1,541/ $1 has discouraged importation of used vehicles into the country. Findings revealed that a total of 326,843 units of used vehicles were shipped into the country between 2022 and 2023, while the cost increased from N325.05 billion in 2022 to N1.063 trillion in 2023.
However, only 18,000 units were imported between January and June 2024 to the nation’s roll-on roll-off terminals at Port and Terminal Multi-service Limited (PTML) and Five Stars Logistics Limited, Tincan Island Port in first six months of 2024, when compared to 45,000 units of vehicle it received in the first half of 2023. This month, data obtained from the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA)’s shipping position explained that six vehicles have arrived PTML, Five Stars Logistics and Greenview Development Nigerian Limited (GDNL) with 2,150 units.
It noted that 1,600 units of the vehicles would be offloaded at PTML from Grande Cotonou with 500 units; Grande Benin, 350 units; Grande Angola, 350 units and Grande Lagos, 400 units. At Five stars it added that Grand Aurora has arrived with 350 units new vehicles as GNDL is expected to receive 200 units of truck heads from Yangtze Jewel. In 2023, no fewer than 132,293 units were shipped to the coun- try while 194,550 unites was recorded in 2022, leading to a decline in import by 28.3 per cent.
Worried by the declined, the National President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Mr. Emenike Nwokeji explained that the incessant fall in the value of Naira and high import duty rates on vehicles had dis- courage importers. According to him, “the scar- city and high cost of forex is the lead issue responsible for the drop in vehicle importation. As at today, it is over 1,400/$1. This is the major reason and it is for the same reason that the cost of vehicles have also gone up in Nigeria. If you buy a car for $1,000 and without paying for any other thing the value here translate to N1.4 million automatically.
“So, a small vehicle that people use for Uber that cost about N3 million before, now goes for as much as N5 mil- lion. The Naira had recorded unprecedented depreciation in 2023 with the official ex- change rate closing at average N820/ $1 as against N460/$1 the previous year while the parallel market rate closed at N1,090/$1 down from N720/$1 in 2022.”
The General Manager of PTML, Mr Tunde Keshinro, who said that PTML is a fore- most roll-on-roll-off terminal in the country, handling be- tween 60 per cent and 70 per cent of imported vehicles, blamed the imposition of import levies on imported vehicles for the drop. He added that the sudden decline in the volume of used vehicles importation into Nigeria could be traced to high import duty and taxes for used vehicles, imposition of import levy on used vehicles, restriction of rebate on ex-factory prices used for assessment of import duty to 10 years, saying that whereas the law allows importation of 12-year old vehicles.
According to him, “vehi- cles above 10 years of age are forced to pay higher import duties, and high exchange rates resulting in excessive- high landing costs above the affordable level for the majority of Nigerians, who depend on private vehicles for private and commercial transportation. These are some of the reasons there was a drop.”
