HARARE: During Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe’s state visit to SA last month, the countries’ customs administrations signed a mutual assistance agreement that will be in place for the next five years.
Close to 45% of imports into Zimbabwe originate from SA. As is typical with agreements of this nature that SA has also concluded with other countries both countries agreed to provide each other with mutual assistance to ensure that their customs laws were properly observed; to prevent, investigate and combat customs offences; and to deliver documents to each other to ensure proper application of customs laws.
There is provision for information sharing either on request, or on own initiative, and assistance also includes the provision of information to determine customs value for import duty purposes.In serious cases that could involve substantial damage to the economy, public health and public security, either of the customs administrations could supply the information on their own initiative.
There is provision for the establishment of a joint, one-stop or juxtaposed border post. If operated efficiently this should speed up the clearance process to ensure faster movement of goods from SA to Zimbabwe.
The one-stop border post concept is designed to facilitate expedited clearance and movement of cargo and travellers, and enhance revenue collection, ultimately reducing the cost of doing business.There is, however, no indication as to when the one-stop or juxtaposed border post will be implemented.
Each country has undertaken to establish a co-ordination unit that will be responsible for receiving and co-ordinating all requests for assistance and for maintaining contact with its counterpart.There is also provision for sharing insight on new enforcement techniques, new trends and methods of committing customs offences. There is provision for secondments, consultancy, training and exchanges of officials.
The two countries have also agreed to conduct an initiative or upon request special surveillance of the movement into or exit from its territory of people who are suspected of being habitual contraveners of customs laws.Surveillance may also be conducted of the movement of suspect storage or goods and methods of payment that give rise to substantial illicit trade.
Places and means of transport used to contravene the customs law in connection with illicit trade may also be subject to surveillance.Each country may, subject to its domestic law, maintain routine monitoring over the movement of specified goods and any agreed quantitative restrictions or quotas that may apply to those goods.
There is definitely a need for closer monitoring of exports and imports to prevent duty leakage. Zimbabwe needs to clamp down on undervaluation and poor quality goods being imported from SA.
For SA, there is a dire need to stamp out corruption at the Beitbridge border post, seen as one of the most porous points of entry into the country. Of particular concern is the illicit tobacco trade from Zimbabwe.This agreement would help SA curb the round-tripping of tobacco and tobacco products that costs the fiscus millions of rand in lost excise duties.
The illicit trade costs the legitimate tobacco industry in the region of R2bn in lost revenue. With the mounting pressures to increase revenue and curb tax evasion, the tobacco industry would be the obvious choice for scrutiny as a result of a closer relations between the tax authorities.
