Customs Engaging Traditional and New Partners with Purpose

Abdul Qadir Memon, Chief Collector Customs (Balochistan)

The International Customs Day is celebrated around the world on 26th January to recognize the role of Customs administrations and contribution made by its officers / officials towards the development of socio-economic fabric of the society.

The aim of celebrating the Custom Day is to highlight the challenges and impediments faced by the Customs officials in the performance of their dutieson day-to-day basisand toappreciate their efforts in achieving these goals.

In order to earmark this day globally, a theme is given by the World Customs Organization to all Customs administrations in order to reinforce the charter of customs administrationto its officers and to encourage knowledge sharing and sense of belonging with the general public as well.

This year’s theme is “Customs Engaging Traditional And New Partners With Purpose”.

This year’s theme is very objective in the evolution of Customs fraternity and after serving 29 years in this department, it has become obligatory for senior customs managementto nurture and train the upcoming generation of customs officers and officials to adhere to the international best practices.

The officers in customs administrations are talented and skillful. They are more receptive to new concepts and technological advancements.

They have the attitude these engage traditional and new partners with purpose Customs Administrations will play a pivotal role in the facilitation of trade, compliance of the International best practices and enhancing the revenues for the Government.

Pakistan Customs has good communication with its partners like tax payers, chambers, business community, and also fully engages with law enforcement agencies to curb smuggling and motivate business community to properly enroll themselves in tax net, where it can simply take pride in its working.

The modern concept of Risk Management Techniques and Artificial Intelligence are employed for managing the risk and averting the crisis like situation.

By employing these initiatives, the Pakistan Customs department in Balochistan has introduced WeBoc system in far-flung areas of the province in order to engage traditional and new partners efficiently.

In Balochistan, Pakistan Customs plays a vital role in managing the distantly located customs stations on borders with Iran, Afghanistan and coastline. Pakistan Customs also faces the gigantic task of making concerted efforts against the menace of smuggling.

The performance of Customs in Balochistan could be gauged from the fact that during the fiscal year 2022-23, the Customs collected Rs. 23643 millions in Custom Duty.

A joint border meeting between Pakistan and Iran was held during the month of September at Mir Jawa, a border city in Iran. The meeting aimed to address various issues related to the Mir Jawa-Taftan border, which is the main crossing point between the two countries.

The Pakistani delegation was led by the undersigned and included officials from customs, immigration, foreign affairs, banking and trade sectors. Trade related issues were discussed with Iranian delegation and it was agreed that regular meeting and consultations would be held to further strengthen their bilateral relations.

Besides the above, Customs launched anti-smuggling control room in Quetta to monitor and coordinate the actions against smuggling in the province. The control room is equipped with modern CCTV cameras and has representatives from Customs, intelligence agencies, and government departments.

It also aimed to prevent the smuggling of goods across the international borders with Iran and Afghanistan, and to strengthen the economy of the country. The Customs, federal and provincial governments, and other agencies were united on one page to control the crisis arising in the country due to smuggling.

Also, Customs inaugurated Laboratory at NLC Dry Port, Quetta according to World Customs Organization (WCO) standard for inspection of all types of chemicals and other items. It should be noted that previously business community / clearing agents has to use laboratories of other provinces, which took a lot of time.

The Customs Headquarter was solarized and 50 KV of Solar system unit is installed.It is pertinent to mention that the said system generates electricity upto 7500 Mega Watts.

The above performance reflects role of Customs in maintaining traditional values and engagement with new partners.

Finally, the best achievers are awarded by Federal Board of Revenue with at least 2 to 3 months’ pay in honorarium besides cash rewards for the Customs employees working in Balochistan.

This in turn generates pride for the award-winningformations and individuals which creates a conducive atmosphere for others to compete and win the title of best achievers.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024