Born on 15th January 1955 in Dass Local Government of Bauchi State, Col. Hameed Ali attended Nigeria Defence Academy Kaduna, between 1974-1977, and the Sam Houston State University, Huntsville Texas USA, between 1984-1988. He holds the Bachelors and Masters degrees in Criminology, and the Nigerian Defence Academy Certificate of Education (NDACE).

Col. Ali had a distinguished career in the Nigerian Army, during which he served as Military Administrator (MILAD) Kaduna State between 1996-1998 and Colonel (Training) TRADOC, Minna, Niger State in 1998.

His previous appointments include General Staff Officer II, Military Police Headquarters, 1981-1982, General Staff Officer II, 1 Mechanised Div, Kaduna, 1992, and Commander, Special Investigation Bureau, Apapa, Lagos 1994-1996.

He  was appointed Comptroller-General of Customs on 27th August, 2015, with the 3  ‘R’ -  Mandate to Reform, Restructure and Raise Revenue profile of the Service.

As a Customs Officer, Col. Ali has taken the message of collaboration to all Stakeholders which include: Partner Government Agencies, Organised Private Sector, Importers, Customs Brokers among others.

Since his assumption of duties, he has also shown that Service commitment to International Organizations such as World Customs Organizations (WCO), World Trade Organizations (WTO), ECOWAS, and other International Agencies under the United Nations shall continue to be respected and strengthened.