By DOH JAMES SONKEY
Finance Minister, Louis Paul Motaze has encouraged his collaborators of the Directorate General of Customs to forge ahead for better results and go beyond their budgetary target of FCFA 859, 2 billion in 2020.
He was speaking last January 28, 2020 at the esplanade of the Yaounde 101 Military Airbase, as Cameroon celebrated this year’s edition of the International Customs Day on the theme “Customs fostering sustainability for people, prosperity and the planet,” which served as an opportunity for the Minister to commune with his collaborators and give them fresh orientations for a better realisation.
In his welcome speech, the Director General of Customs, Fongod Edwin Nuvaga explained that despite Cameroon’s celebration of the event two days later (because January 26) fell on a Sunday, “the Customs administration of Cameroon maintains oneness with the international customs community as it joins in the commemoration of the inaugural session of the customs cooperation council that took place on the 26th of January 1953.”
He said since the official launch of activities last January 16, 2020 in Maroua by Finance Minister Louis Paul Motaze, the D-day was preceded by the organisation in Douala last January 22 and 23 of a special session of Customs/Enterprises Forum and the 12th edition of Customs Partners Night in Kribi.
Stating that in line with this year’s theme, “Customs is working tirelessly to protect the planet and persons in order to ensure prosperity for all,” Fongod Edwin Nuvaga disclosed that last year, they mobilised FCFA 971,7 billion of which 840,0 billion was budget revenue, 96,7 billion out of budget and 35,0 billion transit dues on the Chad Cameroon pipeline.
These revenues, he further explained, witnessed a global increase of FCFA 46, 7 billion in absolute value, 5,0% in relative terms as compared to the global performance of FCFA 925,0 billion in 2018.
In a chat with reporters at the end of the ceremony, Minister Louis Paul Motaze explained that “The public generally knows that Customs has to enable the State realise its revenues but ahead of this target, there are other objectives such as the protection of our country. Our Customs administration has been working very hard alongside Forces of Law and Order to secure Cameroon borders while at the same time collecting revenues for the State. Since we have embarked on a programme with the International Monetary Fund, IMF, we have some objectives and what we are to do in 2020 will be to reach those targets. I have confidence in my hardworking collaborators of the Directorate General of Customs. I have given them my encouragement to go further.”