Clearing Agents Call For Improvement In Pre-Arrival Assessment Of Goods

The Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) has called on the Nigeria Customs Service to fast-track the pre-arrival assessment system to cut costs.
The newly-introduced Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) system enables the custom service to classify and evaluate imported goods while also allowing commercial banks to fasten approval through electronic transactions.
The Chairman of the ANLCA, Area III Onne, Mr Prestige Ossy, made the call in Aba while speaking with newsmen  after a sensitisation programme on PAAR.

The Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) has called on the Nigeria Customs Service to fast-track the pre-arrival assessment system to cut costs.
The newly-introduced Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) system enables the custom service to classify and evaluate imported goods while also allowing commercial banks to fasten approval through electronic transactions.
The Chairman of the ANLCA, Area III Onne, Mr Prestige Ossy, made the call in Aba while speaking with newsmen  after a sensitisation programme on PAAR.
Ossy said the delays associated with the new system was costing the importers much money in payment of excess demurrage and called for a quickening of the process.
 “I know this PAAR programme started newly, but I know that with time, the trade facilitation aspect will increase import and export of products in the zone.
“So, I plead with the Nigeria Custom Service to work hard to ensure that PAAR comes out to importers very quickly because we are having issues with that now because of delays.
“However, I know that when this becomes operational, it will be one of the best things that happened to this country because the NCS has all it takes to do this thing and do it better,” Ossy said.
Mr Dan Ugo, Assistant Controller of Customs, Zone C , told NAN that the essence of the sensitisation was to educate the operators on the global best practices in the field of import and export operations.
He said the sensitisation would enable the operators to understand what was expected of them to make their operations easier.
“As customs, we drive the process and we need to be on the same page, so we have come to let them understand the new trends so that they can progress with their operations,” he said.
Ugo pledged to repeat the exercise for the port users in Aba because of complaints by the participants to enable them to learn what they were taught.