The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the U. S Customs and Border Protection have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to facilitate the exchange of customs expertise from both countries.
The agreement covers trade between the two countries, prevention of narcotics trade, averting human trafficking, and the trafficking of hazardous materials.
Speaking to the media after the signing, the Commissioner of U.S Customs and Border Protection, Mr. Gil Kerlikowske was optimistic the exchanges of custom expertise will impact on trade volumes of Ghana with the U.S.
According to him, even though the main focus of the MoU is targeted at narcotics, human trafficking, and the trafficking of hazardous materials, it will also help economic trade and small business owners.
“All of the companies and organizations and manufacturing companies and freight forwarders and brokers , they all want the same thing, is business, they want consistency so that they are not given different answers at different ports of entry. They want customs regulations to be as close as possible in the country as they are in another because these are multinational corporation that are here and many more are yet to come,” he said.
On his part, the Commissioner of Customs Division of the GRA, John Vianney Kuudamnuru disclosed that the MOU has enabled Ghana to receive logistical and training support from the U.S customs.
“Currently on-going is a training and logistical support programme that the U.S Customs is extending to the GRA to set up a Canine Unit that will augment our security system at the ports and harbor,” he said.
“On the back of such mutually beneficial relationships, it becomes more enriching for the customs administrations of the two countries to concretize their efforts,” he added.
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