The Chairman of the Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics, Dele Oye, has hailed the Federal Government’s National Single Window project as a transformative milestone, predicting the initiative will generate between $2bn and $3bn in investment for Nigeria within the next five years.

Speaking during an interview on ARISE TV on Friday, Oye described the unified trade portal as the most significant pro-business move by the President Bola Tinubu administration to date.

He emphasised that the simplicity of the digital platform would finally end the era of “moving from ministry to ministry” for regulatory compliance. “If you knew, as the private sector, the amount of money we spend on regulatory compliance, this is the biggest, if not the biggest, decision by this government. So, we all fully support it,” he said.

The NSW, scheduled for its Phase One “go-live” on March 27, 2026, aims to integrate over 20 government agencies, including Customs, NAFDAC, and the NPA, into a single digital touchpoint for importers and exporters.

Oye noted that while Nigeria has attempted to launch similar portals three times since 2009, the current effort stands apart due to unprecedented political will.

“The first major reason for its potential success now is presidential involvement. We’ve not enjoyed that in the past. Then the second was the ability of the chairman, Dr. Zacch Adedeji, to get everyone to work together.”

However, Oye issued a stern warning regarding the management of the platform. He pointed out that the current structure is “government-centric,” with the private sector—the primary user of the portal—currently excluded from the decision-making table.

“If you are trying to set up an Orunmila shrine anywhere, if you don’t involve the Yoruba, I’m not sure you’ll be doing Orunmila correctly. This is not a local initiative; it’s an international standard… You must involve the private sector in the platform,” he said.

Highlighting the resilience of Nigerian entrepreneurs amid high interest rates and regulatory bottlenecks, Oye argued that the success of the NSW depends on a “marriage” between the state and the private sector.

“With what Dangote has done for Nigeria, it shows that you cannot look down on the private sector… In anything you do, don’t look down and say the private sector is not a counterpart in the marriage. You cannot marry yourself.”

As the March 27 launch date approaches, the business community remains cautiously optimistic that the NSW will finally dismantle the systemic sabotage that stalled previous attempts, ushering in a new era of trade efficiency for the continent’s largest economy.