By Maimuna Sey-Jawo
Out of a total of 23 countries in West and Central Africa affiliated with the Regional Office for Capacity Building, ROCB under World Customs Organisation, The Gambia was ranked 2nd and 3rd respectively, on customs procedures.
This rise came following commitments and dedication from The Gambia Revenue Authority, GRA who underwent a thorough assessment by the ROCB in Brussels.
Speaking to the journalists shortly after the return of The Gambian delegation headed by the commissioner general, Alagie K Mbye, said the nomination took place two months ago in Conakry, where The Gambia was included in this working group.
He said the group was in charge of the policy and other customs procedures for the region.
He said also, during the last conference meeting held in Brussels from 28 to 3 June 2018, GRA was “lucky” to be handed “a very important roadmap document which was rigorously assessed by ROCB and WCO.
According to him, out of 23 countries, The Gambia came out 2nd in terms of partnership, 2nd in term of human resources management, 2nd in term of customs procedures, 3rd in term of strategic management, and 3rd in term of leadership, respectively.
Mbye disclosed that these are the five key areas that the ROCB and World Customs Organisations assessed the GRA and other customs bodies across Central and West Africa.
He described the award as “a big achievement for the people of The Gambia,” particularly GRA.
He thanked the government for availing them free environment to execute functions of the revenue collecting body.
The handing over took place in Brussels and was attended by the commissioner general of GRA including senior management officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs.
