By News Maker Media in Abuja
For years, Nigeria’s Free Zones have lived a dual life, celebrated as magnets for investment and suspected as backdoors for tax-free goods into the domestic market. Now, the Federal Government is attempting a delicate correction: close the loopholes without killing the incentives that make the zones attractive.
The shift from broad stakeholder consultations to actual drafting by the SEZ Legislative and Regulatory Reform Committee is the most serious attempt in years to clean up the regime. The inclusion of NEPZA, OGFZA, the Ministry of Justice, and crucially, Customs and the NRS in the drafting room, is a smart move. Past reforms failed because rules were written without the enforcers.
Minister Jumoke Oduwole’s messaging is carefully balanced. She is blunt that Free Zones cannot become an alternative route into the Customs territory, yet firm that lawful incentives, duty-free capital imports, tax exemptions on export profits, 100% foreign ownership, remain sacrosanct. This dual assurance is aimed at two audiences: local manufacturers who complain of unfair competition, and foreign investors who fear policy summersaults.
Stakeholders have put real issues on the table: what happens to existing licensees, how the contentious 75/25 export-to-domestic sales ratio will be implemented, and how to end multiple inspections. The proposed principle of “one authority, one visit, one record” if adopted, could be transformative.
The most forward-looking element is the Digital Free Zones. Recognizing Innovator and Sandbox licences for tech, fintech, creative and IP-based firms shows the government understands that future exports will be intangible. Aligning this with President Tinubu’s 180-day directive gives it urgency.
The risks, however, remain. If transition arrangements are unclear, legitimate investors may face uncertainty. If Customs enforcement becomes overzealous before new rules are final, it could scare capital. And if the reform creates another layer of bureaucracy instead of simplifying it, the “one authority” promise will ring hollow.
Chairman of NEPZA, Hadi Mutallab and NEZA’s Toyin Elegbede both struck the right tone: protect those doing the right thing, punish abuse. Whether the final regulation achieves that balance will determine if this reform truly strengthens Nigeria’s competitiveness or becomes another policy that looks good on paper.
