Peep Sierra Leone

The Customs and Excise Department (CED) of the National Revenue Authority (NRA) will join 168 countries around the world that belong to the World Customs Organization (WCO) to celebrate "World Customs Day", which is slated for January 26, this year. The theme for this year's celebration is "Customs and Business: Improving Performance Through Partnerships".

Speaking to this medium, John Baimba Sesay of the Public Affairs and Tax Education (PATE) unit of the NRA, disclosed that the theme for this year's WCO celebration is "appropriate and timely" as it almost coincides with the soon-to-be launched UNCTAD-created ASYCUDA (Automated System for Customs Data) computer programme by the NRA. Mr. Baimba Sesay said that the ASYCUDA computer software package is being used by many Customs Administrations in most of the WCO-member countries, and it will harmonize the NRA's Customs operations with those in other countries.

The ASYCUDA programme will not only dramatically increase Customs revenues; it will also speed up declaration and clearing of goods, and, reduce costs for importers and exporters.

It will also dramatically increase government's access to trade and other statistics, and will smoothen coordination between the NRA's Customs department and other economic and finance arms of government. The project, he went on, which will commence in the Customs Headquarters in Cline Town, Freetown, is expected to be rolled out to other Customs Posts at the Lungi International Airport, and at Gbalamuya in Kambia District and Koindu in Kailahun District.

One big difference of the Customs Department in the NRA is that it regularly consults stakeholders - importers; clearing and forwarding agencies, shipping agencies, Sierra Leone Ports Authority; banks, etc. - in meetings, workshops, one-to-one consultations, so that stakeholders are always kept abreast of whatever changes are taking place at Customs, and, flow along with these changes, instead of building up any resistance to them, Baimba Sesay pointed out.

The theme of this year's World Customs Day celebrations is in line with the "partnership for mutual benefit" between business people and Customs that has already been made practical in Customs Department in the NRA" "Customs and Business: Improving Performance through Partnerships".