Fully implement single window customs facility, Zimra urged

Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau
THE Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) should take advantage of the reduced paperwork during the lockdown period to fully implement the single window customs system.

Under the model, border operations are streamlined and all relevant customs and excise information is fed into one system, which is the Automated System for Customs Data (Asycuda) with line stakeholders working under agreed turnover times.

This is done to minimise cases where stakeholders have to come to the border for unnecessary procedures, which can be easily conducted outside the border area.

Further, compliance and enforcement will be made seamless rather than the current system where commercial cargo undergoes many checks physically and others by the many players within the border.

The single window facility will also incorporate a single payment system.

Shipping and Forwarding Agents Association of Zimbabwe’s (SFAAZ) chief executive officer, Mr Joseph Musariri, said the Covid-19 lockdown has created an ideal environment for Zimra to fully go hi-tech.

“The main thing that this lockdown period has shown is that speed in customs clearing can be achieved by less physical examinations by Zimra,” he said.

“There is also a need to go paperless in all our customs clearing processes. At the moment there is paperwork that has to be submitted to Zimra manually especially for stamping and marking-off of permits and licences.

“In addition, all Government departments must be automated so that licences and permits can be applied for and submitted online in order to reduce both cost and time.

“The time is ripe to introduce the long-awaited single-window system in the clearing of both our exports and imports”.

Mr Musariri said the implementation of a single-window system would help speed up the movement of cargo within the borders.

He said, where most of the processes are carried up electronically there is an improved turnaround time as compared to the manual procedures.

The official said presently the turnaround time depends on the type of clearance though the manual procedures were becoming less.

“Before the spread of the Covid-19 and implementation of various precautionary measures, it was taking an average two days to get a truck out of the border.

“However, Zimra’s promised turnaround time (as per their client charter) is three hours. You will note that in a paperless environment that should be achievable and we are saying this should be the target post-Covid-19,” said Mr Musariri.

As part of the ongoing national strategy to minimise the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, Zimra is prioritising the use of e-services to minimise the interface with customs and excise officers.

All physical examinations on goods (inbound and outbound) and the clearing of goods including vehicles under the Immigrant Rebate facility have been suspended.

It is reliably understood that at least 3 500 vehicles are imported through the immigrant rebate facility annually at Beitbridge Border Post alone.