The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has said that the newly introduced single-window system used for trade facilitation at the ports has generated GH¢3.65 billion in 3 months.

This was according to provisional figures made available to the Daily Graphic by the GRA Customs Division. The figures attributed the success to the deployment of the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS) from July 1 to September 26, 2020.

Per the records, the figure accrued, GH¢825.88 million, is higher than GH¢2.82 billion in revenue mobilised in the same period of 2019 and is also GH¢388.31 million higher than the July-September 2018 revenue generation of GH¢3.26 billion.

According to the Commissioner of the Customs Division at the GRA, Col. Kwadwo Damoah (rtd.), the gains chalked has so far improved revenue mobilization even in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

“This is happening under the COVID-19 pandemic when there have been reduced imports at Ghana’s land and seaports. In terms of efficiency and effectiveness, we are almost around 90 percent,” he stated.

The revenue accrued from the deployment of the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS) include import duty and levies, import VAT, import NHIL, import GETFund levy, total imports, and petroleum tax.

UNIPASS/ICUMS Background

Effective June 1, 2020, all transactions related to the import and export of goods at the various ports started to be conducted through ICUMS, ending the operations of GCNet and West Blue Consulting.

The system, deployed by Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), replaced the Ghana Customs Management System (GCMS).

ICUMS is a system built by Universal Pass (UNI-PASS), specially tailored to Ghana’s situation and provides an end-to-end supply chain solution that incorporates and consolidates existing systems currently in operation.

Ghana Link Services Limited, which has a 10-year contract with the government, as a technical partner, contracted CUPIA of Korea to deploy its electronic customs management system, called Universal Pass (UNI-PASS) now known as the Integrated Customs Management System ICUMS, for Ghana’s trade facilitation.