Like the rest of the world, Pakistan celebrates the International Customs Day on 26th January every year to highlight the contribution made by customs authorities towards maintaining the security and integrity of the transnational movement of goods as well as safeguarding the economic interests of their countries.
This is, indeed, a day to appreciate the performance of Pakistan Customs in establishing the writ of national and international laws relating to cross-border trade, controlling illicit trafficking, facilitating economic integration, and collecting revenue for the exchequer. But this is also a day for self-analysis - an occasion to evaluate the performance of Pakistan's customs authorities against global standards and benchmarks, and assess how best to improve outcomes in terms of transparency, facilitation, and creation of a conducive environment for entrepreneurial initiative. From this vantage point, this year's theme, Digital Customs: Progressive Engagement is certainly very pertinent. Pakistan is already working on these lines, and an automated cargo clearance system, WeBOC, is taking care of more than ninety percent of shipments into and out of Pakistan. An electronic interface between the agency and client would certainly improve the efficiency and quality of service delivery by Pakistan Customs.
I congratulate Pakistan Customs and the Federal Board of Revenue on the progress made so far. I am confident that they would continue to make all possible efforts to introduce the latest technology and international best practices within the shortest possible time both to enhance performance and to provide an enabling institutional structure to promote and sustain rapid expansion in Pakistan's international trade and commerce.
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