The Danish International Development Agency (Danida) has handed over 15 Pick-ups Vehicles to the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority to enhance preventive operations at some of the frontier stations for effective patrols.

It has also given out three working dogs to the Dog Academy to assist the Customs Division in rummaging of vehicles, identifying contraband goods on persons and packages as well as general patrol duties.

In a brief remarks, Mr Emmanuel Nti, the Commissioner-General of the GRA, said the vehicles formed part of the package earmarked for the Customs Division under the Tax and Development Programme being spearhead by DANIDA.

He said the vehicles would further enhance GRA operations in revenue mobilisation as well as protecting the entire nation against the infiltration of prohibited goods.

Mr Nti said the performance of GRA was critical to the economic and social development and thanked the Danish government for the immense support.

Mr Peter Olessen, Deputy Danish Ambassador, said the Tax and Development Programme was designed to help improve the sustainability of Ghana’s public finances.

Currently, the redesigned programme, which focuses mainly on Customs, supports some 26 projects under the GRA’s second strategic plan with training and capacity-building as well as some equipment.

Mr Olessen said although Danida had moved away from development assistance involving purchase of vehicles and construction of buildings, it had shown flexibility in this instance because capacity-building focusing on just training, study tours and on-the-job support without further capacitating the relevant units could not take us far enough.

“It is our hope that the capacity we build within the GRA will enable this institution to better protect Ghana’s borders, guard the revenue coffers and strengthen staff capacity to deliver on its mandate,” he said.

He said improving the performance of the GRA was critical to the economic and social development of Ghana, especially in the transition from Aid to Trade to strengthen revenue administration to make up for the possible shortfall in donor inflows when development partners exit from development cooperation.

On his part, the Commissioner Customs Division of the GRA, Mr Isaac Crentsil, said since 2015 the Danish government had supported the GRA in its modernisation efforts, offering technical assistance, donating printers, and scanners, among others.

He said the 15 pick-ups will go a long way to assist Customs preventive operations and be up to the task of checking smuggling along the country’s vast borders.