Kenya Revenue Authority establishes command centers to combat illicit trade

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has established command centres in Mombasa and its Nairobi headquarters.

The move is aimed at scaling up its scanner inspection efforts as part of measures to eliminate physical examination of goods and ultimately reduce congestion.

With the installation of the ultramodern scanners at the Port of Mombasa, KRA hopes that those involved in the concealment, mis-declaration and trafficking of prohibited goods have no place at the port.

KRA Deputy Commissioner in charge of the Southern Region Nicholas Kinoti, said that ''this in itself is a game changer towards addressing customer related issues as well as facilitate trade through the port.''

Speaking to media after a tour of its installations at the Mombasa Port and Forodha House, Kinoti said besides increasing security and safety of the port, the container scanners will improve overall performance.

Kinoti who was accompanied by Ronald Omulindi, officer in charge of the Domestic tax services said through the modernization efforts seek to remain responsive to the shipping and logistics global trends.

He said the scanners will do away with the need for physical inspection of import and export containers a task he noted was cumbersome for the customs department.

‘' We are banking more on technology. The modern scanners have eased the inspection process but whenever something untoward is detected then physical inspection would become necessary’', he said.

He said that currently there are six scanners installed at the port and we are able to clear between 700-800 containers in a day.