The Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN) has decried the high rate of manual examination of cargoes at the nation's seaports and has urged the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to deploy technology to drive the process.

Speaking on behalf of the operators at the weekend in Lagos, the Chairman of STOAN, Princess Vicky Haastrup, said: "We have a situation where people must visit the port physically to do customs documentation and cargo examination before they can take delivery of their consignments. This is not safe at this time, and it is also inefficient.

"The Nigeria Customs Service should do everything possible to install functional scanners at the ports to reduce the high rate of physical examination of cargoes and to reduce human contacts. Customs should also make it possible for consignees to process their release documents and make necessary duty payments online without having to visit the port or customs commands."

She emphasised the need to reduce the number of government agencies that participated in cargo examination at the port in addition to reducing the number of checks carried out on cleared cargoes both inside and outside the port premises, and added that, "Customs' clearing process must become smart at this time."

Haastrup further said at the onset of the COVID pandemic, terminal operators engaged the Federal Government on the need to ensure that the nation's seaports remained open during the lockdown so as to ensure that the supply chain was not disrupted.