Raymond Amaglo, Director of Operations at Ghana Link Services Ltd
The second phase of development of the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS) deployed by Ghana Link Services Limited is expected to be ready by September 2021; the Director of Operations at Ghana Link Services Ltd, Raymond Amaglo, has revealed.
According to him, the development, currently at its advanced stage, when completed, would include an e-auction process; in addition to that, is the Advanced Passenger Information System to be used at the Airport for risk profiling of cargo and people.
An e-wallet system, he further said, would be introduced to serve as a safety net to keep an outstanding balance for future transactions with the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
Mr Amaglo urged importers and, by extension, Clearing Agents, to eschew dishonest practices during the import clearance process to avoid frustrations that may emerge as a result.
Educating the public on the car clearance process on the Eye on Port program, Mr Amaglo stated that the Integrated Customs Management System is robust and doesn’t give room to malpractices in the clearance processes.
He said, “declarants have to ensure that they are putting in the right information. If you are not compliant, the system is able to frustrate you.”
In the same vein, the Director of Operations averred that the ICUMS rewards compliant users by ensuring a seamless, convenient, and quick turnaround time during the clearance process.
He revealed that “vehicle declarations are now being churned out in a matter of hours from Customs, so if they are able to truthfully and accurately declare, they would have a very good journey with ICUMS.”
Mr Amaglo praised ICUMS for ensuring that importers save time and money with its pre-manifest declaration which allows declarants to submit documents and pay relevant duties and taxes electronically before the shipment arrives in Ghana.
“One advantage of the pre-manifest declaration is that, once you have paid at this stage, you won’t be affected by exchange rate increases when customs update it weekly until the arrival of the vessel,” he disclosed.
The official from the IT solutions company mentioned that ICUMS has integrated with all commercial banks operating in the country and enables importers to pay with the various payment options, such as visa, Mastercard and mobile money, unlike in previous years.
He said ICUMS’ integration with the various stakeholders in the clearance chain had created a centralised platform for submitting relevant information, making it easy for importers to remotely and conveniently do business.
According to the Director of Operations, key among the benefits of the ICUMS system is the retention of the duty calculator, which helps importers of used cars get a close estimate of duties payable.