PAAR: Customs’ revenue grows 23.4% to N950bn in 11mnths

One year into the implementation of the Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) introduced in December 2013 by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the service says it has witnessed about 23.4 percent growth in its revenue profile in the last 11 months. The revenue profile, which stood at N950 billion in the month of November, is predicted to grow over N1 trillion to the estimated N1.2 trillion 2014 revenue target of the service.

Charles Edike, Customs area controller, Apapa Area 1 Command, disclosed this in Lagos recently while delivering a lecture titled ‘The Effect of Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) on the Nigeria Economy’ during the inauguration of the newly elected executive council of the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (MARAN).

Edike said the N950.1 billion revenue generated into the federation account was 23.4 percent higher than the N769.3 billion collected in the corresponding period of 2013.

Celebrating the one year existence of PAAR, Abdullahi Dikko, comptroller-general, in his anniversary message published in the national dailies, stated that the development of a Nigerian-made electronic platform (PAAR) to replace the Risk Assessment Report (RAR) formerly issued by the defunct destination inspection service providers has enabled the service to hit a trillion naira revenue collection from the annual revenue collection of N850 billion in 2013.

The Customs boss hinted that PAAR has modernized Nigeria Customs and also positioned it to be a reference point in trade facilitation, risk management and revenue collection in global Customs community.

In his presentation, Edike further noted that Customs had saved about N36.9 billion collected under the 1 percent Comprehensive Import Supervision Scheme (CISS) for the economy. The N36.9 billion CISS, he explained, was the amount that would have been paid to the three former destination service providers as contained in their agreement with the Federal Government.

Findings have shown that PAAR had serious teething problems at its early stage, which NCS has been able to overcome as it has so far received and processed 201,330 requests out of which 188,424 were finally released and 108,169 uplifted with a total Cost Insurance and Freight (CIF) value of N5.6 trillion.

PAAR, Edike stated, has helped in reducing cost and time of cargo clearance at the port, thus facilitating trade.

On the challenges facing the electronic clearing platform, the Apapa Customs boss disclosed that lack of compliance to trade rules and regulations by importers and their agents had been the major challenge confronting PAAR such that a total of 14, 259 PAAR have so far been rejected for not complying with the rule of engagement. It is also non-compliance of importers that results to querying of some PAAR documents by Customs officers, and these add in delaying cargo clearance at the port.

“All that Customs is soliciting is transparency and honest declaration by importers and their agents because it is only when there is conflicting information that PAAR is queried by Customs,” he said.

Uzoamaka Anagor