The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has been selected to receive the 2026 International Humanitarian Award in recognition of his humanitarian contributions and community-focused leadership.
The award, instituted by the United Towns Agency for North-South Cooperation (UTA), will be presented during the organisation's World Humanitarian Day commemoration scheduled for August 20, 2026, in Abuja.
The announcement was made by the Country President of UTA Nigeria, Ambassador Princess Abigail Amalaha, during a courtesy visit to the Customs Headquarters in Abuja.
According to Amalaha, the award honours outstanding Africans whose policies, initiatives and humanitarian interventions have significantly improved the lives of vulnerable people across the continent and beyond.
She said Adeniyi earned the recognition through the Nigeria Customs Service's Customs Cares Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, which has delivered food and relief materials, medical outreach programmes, educational support for internally displaced persons and orphanages, as well as empowerment programmes targeting women and youths across the country.
"Dr. Adeniyi has demonstrated that a revenue agency can also be a humanitarian agency. The Customs Cares Initiative has brought succour to thousands of Nigerians and redefined the Service's relationship with host communities," Amalaha said.
Responding, Adeniyi described the award as a motivation to deepen the Service's commitment to humanitarian service alongside its statutory responsibilities.
"I am deeply humbled by this honour. It will spur the Nigeria Customs Service to do more for humanity. We remain committed not only to securing our borders and facilitating trade but also to supporting vulnerable Nigerians and promoting human dignity," he said, while commending UTA for its humanitarian efforts.
The event will also feature a keynote lecture titled "Breaking the Cycle: Achieving Lasting Solutions to Humanitarian Crises in Africa and Beyond," to be delivered by a development and humanitarian expert.
UTA is also expected to unveil its flagship UTA Social Centre, a community intervention hub designed to provide skills acquisition, healthcare support and welfare services for vulnerable populations.
The ceremony is expected to attract dignitaries from across Africa and beyond, including a delegation from UTA headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, led by the organisation's Global Secretary-General, Ambassador Dr. Eya Essif.
UTA is a United Nations-affiliated non-governmental organisation with Special Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), promoting peace, sustainable development and humanitarian cooperation since its establishment in 1982.