KARACHI: The Customs fraternity around celebrated the International Customs Day on Tuesday under the slogan “Digital Customs: Progressive Engagement”.
Talking to Customs Today, Collector Majid Yousfani said that there is a need to promote coordination and sharing of information among various departments to facilitate trade activities and control smuggling. He said that communication and coordination should be enhanced among the government departments, regulating agencies and the business community.
Pakistan Customs is mindful of the fast changing trade dynamics and keeps on enhancing capacity of its human resource to address the challenges in an effective manner. With its unique expertise, Pakistan Customs has made great strides over recent years in achieving higher visibility with national governments, international organizations, the business sector, the donor community, development banks and other international trade stakeholders. Country-wide roll-out of automated customs clearance system (WeBOC), establishment of Risk Management Unit, efforts to integrate regulatory authorities (INTRA), developing Electronic Data Interface (EDI) with China and Afghanistan, and last but not the least, the “Integrated Transit Trade Management System” (ITTMS) Project in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank; are trailblazing the way towards greater awareness of the contribution of Customs through digitalization for better connectivity with the stakeholders and resilient trade environment.
In order to keep Pakistan Customs on international pace remarkable steps have been taken for Integrated Regulatory Authorities (INTRA) project in the form of development and implementation of modules for the Engineering Development Board (EDB), Ministry of Climate Change, Trade Development Authority of Pakistan, State Bank of Pakistan and commercial banks. The analysis and design work for some other modules for Ministry of Commerce, National Tariff Commission has already been completed. Progress has also been made with respect to the analysis of the business / domain involving the implementation of trade policy objectives by other departments like Drug Regulatory Authority, Plant Protection Department and Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This year’s theme of International Customs Day will provide an impetus to Pakistan Customs to develop its vision of automation and reforms and to meet the challenges highlighted above. Our commitments for implementation of Trade Facilitation Agreement also require us to enhance our efforts for the integration of regulatory authorities with the customs single window (WeBOC) culminating into a National Single Window. In order to achieve these milestones of trade facilitation, it is imperative upon us to establish a Customs Information and Communication Technology (ICT) company that can face the cutting edge challenges of trade and technology. I am confident that the enhanced ICT support will provide a solid foundation for Pakistan Customs to be able to face national, regional and international challenges of trade, transport facilitation including those emerging under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
