Customs upgrades to ASYCUDA 4.2.2, promises greater efficiency

The Customs and Excise Division has updated its processing software system to ASYCUDA 4.2.2, which is supposed to bring greater efficiency to the export and import process.

In a release Monday, the Finance Ministry, which oversees the division, said this new system has several new features that are geared towards improving the quality of service offered by the division while at the same time enforcing the necessary Customs controls that ensure consistent quality data is submitted by traders.

“The new features are geared at improving the ease of doing business, promoting accurate fee calculations and enabling granular data collection for all stakeholders through enhanced digitisation.

The new features include electronic agent release, freight segment, cargo amend, warehouse transfers, vehicle page and improved warehouse inventory management.

The system was rolled out on January 4, but some businesses complained about a disconnect between the way the system was supposed to work and how it actually did. In a release a few days after the system was implemented, the American Chamber of Commerce (Amcham) said it seemed that the new system was down more often than it was up.

Operations, however, appear to have improved since then.

In a brief phone interview, Amcham CEO Nirad Tewarie said part of the challenges seemed to be a lack of preparedness, leading to some difficulty with the transition although he did acknowledge that customs did offer training in the new system.

“The roll-out could have been a little better but we welcome it. (The system) can do all the things as indicated and can improve the (customs clearance process) once all elements are implemented properly.”

He noted that more training is happening and he is optimistic that things will improve, including co-ordination among other departments involved in ensuring safety and security, like the Chemistry, Food and Drug division and plant quarantine. He also noted that customs was “woefully understaffed” and this was a chronic problem that has to be managed if the system is to work properly.

“We—the country and Government — need to address the myriad of issues that affects Customs. A centralised risk management system would go a long way, where something would require physical inspections and some won’t. Data (including data pulled globally) can highlight risks better. It won’t solve every problem but it will certainly speed up trade and border security and reduce corruption.”

ASYCUDA is a customs management system developed by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). It is used internationally and incorporates the global standards for customs processing. The challenges to doing business in TT, particularly bureaucratic hurdles, has been a perennial complain among the business community.

In his budget speech last October, Finance Minister Colm Imbert said the government will be working on removing the impediments to doing business. The country currently ranks 105 out of 190 on the 2020 World Bank ease of doing business index.