Prime Minister’s Advisor: Electronic customs declaration prevents smuggling and reduces corruption

 
Baghdad – INA

The Prime Minister’s Financial Advisor, Mazhar Muhammad Saleh, confirmed today, Sunday, that the electronic customs declaration program prevents smuggling and reduces corruption and bribery. He explained that it facilitates precise and swift monitoring and review processes and noted that it reduces costs for importers.
 
Saleh told the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “The development and implementation of the electronic customs declaration program is a significant and positive step towards improving customs performance specifically, and enhancing the efficiency of the Iraqi economy in general.”
 
He added, “The adoption of this electronic customs declaration program is an essential part of the reform efforts within the government program in the fields of electronic governance, financial and economic reform. It aims to modernize administrative and financial systems, combat corruption, and enhance Iraq’s foreign trade efficiency.”
 He pointed out that “this electronic system provides two crucial aspects in the customs domain, vital for the evolution of customs policy applications in Iraq as one of the significant arms of fiscal policy in our country: first, reducing human intervention in customs clearance operations, thereby minimizing opportunities for corruption and bribery.”
 
He continued: “The second aspect is that it offers clear tracking of transactions, facilitating effective, precise, and swift customs oversight and review.”
He emphasized that “the electronic customs declaration program will undoubtedly reduce the time required to complete customs declarations, thereby supporting trade movement and reducing costs borne by traders and importers. This shift in customs declaration patterns will encourage companies to import and export goods with high ease and speed.”
 
Saleh explained, “In terms of customs revenues, the program will contribute to the accurate collection of customs duties, preventing customs evasion. Taxes, as a form of vital public revenue, are a focal point of the government program’s efforts to enhance non-oil revenues, in addition to reducing losses resulting from corruption or negligence in collecting related duties and taxes, which have been prevalent under previous manual and human intervention methods.”
 
He noted that “the program offers the national economy’s business environment an advanced signal to investors and traders. Its precise operations should positively reflect in the reports of various international organizations regarding the improvement of the business environment in our country, including periodic reports from the World Bank in this regard.”