MRA Commemorates International Customs Day in style, Launches E-Tariff

The 2025 International Customs Day was celebrated on the 31^st January 2025 under the theme “Customs Delivering on its Commitment to Efficiency, Security and Prosperity”. The event brought together experts, academicians and other stakeholders in the field of Customs. The theme, particularly, emphasized the need for MRA and other customs administrations to translate their commitments into measurable actions that promote and foster trade facilitation, ensure supply chain security, and spur sustainable economic growth. The day was exhilarated with the launch of the Electronic Tariff Book (e-Tariff).

Speaking during the event, the MRA Board member, John Kamanga, who was the Guest of Honour, commended MRA for the pace at which it is embracing digitization, adding that introduction of e-tariff is a testament to the significant strides the Authority is making in eliminating inefficiencies created by manual processes.

“E-tariff will reduce the time and effort required for import and export procedures. Therefore, we are paving the way for economic development and making it easier to conduct business in Malawi” said Kamanga.

Commissioner General for the MRA, Daniel Daka, explained that the e-tariff is one of the flagship projects MRA is streamlining to facilitate trade while curbing proliferation of smuggled and prohibited goods into and out of the country.

“We are coming from a time where most tools were manual. For example, the Tariff book was big and voluminous, and was only found in print format with customs officers. With e-tariff, traders will access information at the tip of their fingers, and do all calculations regarding taxes beforehand. Therefore, we will continue to be dynamic and keep pace with changes in the evolving environment” said Daka.

International Customs Day was set aside in 1952 by World Customs Organisation (WCO), an intergovernmental body which has over 180 members. It promotes customs practices through global standard and is commemorated on 26^th January annually.

BY JOSEPH ULEMU.