The average time for customs clearance at the port of Praia will be reduced from the current six days to 24 hours, according to a commitment made by the Cape Verdean Minister of Finance, Olavo Correia, according to local weekly newspaper A Semana.

The six days currently needed for customs clearance include not only the customs service, but also every other player in the process, such as official dispatchers, port manager Portos de Cabo Verde (Enapor), the Tax Office and the sanitary inspection service, among others.

At a ceremony held in the capital, the minister said that the current average time “is a very positive development compared to the recent past,” and thanked all those involved in the process, in particular the customs workers “who generate more than 40% of the country’s tax revenues, and have become a key part of the functioning of the state.”

Correia said that even though the development was positive, the average time for customs clearance is “still excessive” and gave assurances that the government would continue with the process of modernisation of public administration, introducing improvements immediately in the Customs service. (macauhub)