The ever-growing complexities of trades and smuggling as well as rising security threats have imposed several and shifting roles cum challenges on customs service around the world. Even as revenue generation and trade promotion remain important, more than ever security is now a new imperative. The rise of transnational terrorism globally has triggered a sort of paradigm shift in the role of customs service from the traditional focus on trade facilitation and revenue generation through collection of duties on imports and exports to national security. How both the old and new roles are efficiently pursued determines their impact on national development. Against this backdrop this study interrogated the contributions of Nigeria Custom Service to national development with reference to that of the United States Custom and Border Protection. Thus the study argues that lack of synergy among Nigeria Custom Service and sister agencies and inadequate utilization of information communication technologies undermined her performance unlike its counterpart in the United States. The study adopted Communication Theory as its framework of analysis while data were generated and analyzed through documentary method and content analysis respectively. The study recommends closer synergy among Nigeria Custom Service and sister agencies for an enhanced contribution to national development.