2merkato

A team from the Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority investigated Nile Drilling and Exploration plc for alleged evasion of customs duties on imported items to Ethiopia.

The team seized a water well drilling rig from the company’s garage according to sources. It was alleged that  the rig had not fulfilled mandatory customs formalities.

The water well drilling rig passed Modjo checkpoint and was taken to the Indian company’s garage without passing the Kality Customs clearance point said the sources. This was found to be in contravention of customs procedures which require imported items entering the capital to be cleared by the Kality office before their owners can take legal possession of them.

The Revenues and Customs Authority of Ethiopia is to launch an electronic cargo tracking system on the road between Addis Ababa and Port Djibouti.

The effort, which will commence in two weeks, expects to track and monitor the transit of goods, to reduce customary theft that added up to 1.4% of commodities exported in the last fiscal year according to statistics from the International Cargo Securities Council.

Such acts of theft have negatively affected the image of Ethiopian exports on the international market claimed Belay Desta, Head of the Border Directorate with ERCA.

The Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority is in the process of automating its customs valuation system. The new system will allow the customs system in Ethiopia to transition to a transaction cost system as per the World Trade Organization Agreement in Customs Valuation from a minimum price setting system.

The project is being undertaken by the Center for Development of Advanced Computing, an Indian Software company for 3.5 million birr. ERCA signed an agreement with the company in September of 2011.

The Revenues and Customs Authority of Ethiopia is to conduct the second phase of the business survey to register more taxpayers in Addis Ababa. The tax authority will begin the survey as soon as it receives a go ahead from the City Administration according to officials.

ERCA plans to survey 23,000 businesses in Addis Ababa in the second phase of the survey expected to commence in two weeks.

The Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority (ERCA) is to set up an inspection laboratory for tariff classification of imports. The lab will help determine the tariff classifications of imports on the basis of their material and chemical composition.

The inspection laboratory is a recommendation from the Dutch Customs Authority (DCA) and the World Customs Organization (WCO). The two agencies were invited to evaluate existing tariff classifications and recommend possible changes by ERCA. The contract was sponsored by the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA).