The Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) is set to recruit about 200 fresh personnel this year as part of measures to collect more revenue for the state.
Currently, the Customs Division has over 3,000 personnel, but Mr Wallace Akondor, Commissioner of Customs, said the number is woefully inadequate considering the length of the country’s borders.
He noted that Customs has an ageing personnel population, with most of them ranging between 46 and 50 years; therefore, it needs fresh limbs to deliver effectively on its mandate.
He acknowledged that the current threats to national security globally required customs administrations to take greater roles in enforcement, which called for an appropriately equipped customs personnel.
Speaking to The Finder in an interview in his office, Mr Akondor said Customs did its first recruitment in five years in 2014 even though people continue to leave the service as a result of natural attrition.
He explained that a freeze was placed on recruitment as a result of budgetary constraints as well as the preparation and actual integration of Customs into GRA.
Mr Akondor noted that Ghana has large boundary and landmarks that require constant patrols, hence the need to recruit more to bridge the deficit.
According to him, the new recruits would inject new ideas and fresh enthusiasm needed for the forward movement of Customs.
He explained that this year’s recruitment would a mopping up exercise of the recruitment exercise started last year in which 150 personnel were recruited.
Mr Akondor stated that GRA’s aggressive capacity building programmes, both locally and outside Ghana, were critical to Customs.
He said GRA launched its second strategic planning, and one of the key areas is capacity building.
He explained that the tax environment keeps changing and needs new skills as well as innovative ways of collecting tax using technology.
The Customs Commissioner stressed the need to understand stakeholders in order to design and execute tax modules.
Mr Akondor also noted that ageing equipment and system needed replacements.
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