Single Window reducing under declaring at ports – GRA

The introduction of the Single Window Application Platform reduced the issue of under declaring at the port.

Under declaring happens when importers quote lower prices of goods imported to warrant lower duties.

The single window application platform is a web application hosted centrally on a web server with a centralized database server.

West Blue implements this solution to help automate the trade supply chain business processes hereby reducing time and cost of business operation; increase productivity; improve transparency and Integrity in ease of doing business.

Launched by Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the platform has helped to simplify port operations and transactions.

Manager at the Customs Service Bureau, Alfread Abio told the media at a stakeholder conference on the impact of the platform and the Ghana Trade Hub on port operation that the platform has helped in collecting the right revenue from importers.

The single window is meant to ensure a seamless, efficient and user-friendly e-clearance regime.

It also provides an opportunity for traders to lodge their documents, including certificates of origin, invoices, customs declarations and import/export permits, at a single location (electronically) to be accessed by all regulatory and trade agencies, instead of traders sending copies of the same documents to different agencies.

The system ensures that what is declared is collected in revenue, thereby eliminating undervaluation and payments, which have been the bane of tax collections at the country’s trade points.

In Ghana, the system is being implemented by Customs World Dubai, in partnership with other companies.