Transition plan for Customs' takeover at ports on course - WCO

The World Customs Organization, WCO, has downplayed suggestions there is lack of a proper transition plan for the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority to takeover the valuation of imported goods at the ports from September.

The role has for about 15 years been executed by Destination Inspection Companies whose contract ends on August, 31. Customs is to takeover in line with the WCO standards but there are concerns of an apparent lack of a proper transition plan.

WCO’s Senior Technical Officer in charge of Valuation, Ian Cremer who is in Ghana to train Customs officials as part of the take-over process, however explained to Joy Business Editor, Emmanuel Agyei there’s no cause for alarm.

“There have been other instances in the region where maybe the decision has been made too soon. But I think put in a wider context, in Western Central Africa, there’s a strong momentum and a number of countries in the region have gone through this process or considering it. Ghana is now reaching forward but we don’t say these plans are in place, not finalised or finished off yet but we’re still working.

“Fully functioning customs administration will find everything it needs within the country itself and there will be legal obligations on importers to keep the necessary records so that customs can then audit or the customs will reduce their checks at the boarder to make the focus more on authentic auditing functions,” he said.

According to him, Ghana is on course to successfully carry out the transition.

“The Customs are certainly doing a lot to prepare themselves and there’s a number of projects, and a number of donors agencies and partners that are working with Customs. There’s a lot of support and WCO’s role is to make sure everything is properly coordinated and everyone is working for the benefit of this transition process, and we can give some guidance on points to follow up. And we certainly see things are going in the right direction but you are perfectly correct that the planning is everything - it’s not just flicking a switch overnight. Customs can do this. It comes down to capacity building and there’s a number of strands that Customs need to take into account,” he concluded.