Through a meeting held, Thursday 29 avril 2021 in Cotonou, customs and its technical arms, port operators, officials from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, of the Agency for the Promotion of Investment and Exports (APIeX) learned about the facilities offered by Benin in terms of cross-border trade. A meeting led by Minister Romuald Wadagni whose central theme is "Facilitating cross-border trade at the Port of Cotonou : What do you need to know ?».
The reforms initiated by the Beninese government embrace all sectors in Benin. And cross-border trade is one of the sectors on which the Beninese State is betting. In this context, this meeting will have made it possible to unveil innovations for a win-win partnership between economic operators and Benin. So, reduction of operational times and costs, securing the Corridor, transparency and reliability of operations, etc. are among others, all the reforms implemented for foreign trade. Likewise, the implementation of the Import Verification Program piloted by the technical partner Benin Control, the dematerialization of customs clearance procedures via the Single Window for Foreign Trade (GUCE), the migration of all Customs Units to ASYCUDA World, the establishment of a National Program of Authorized Economic Operators (OAS)…etc are innovations that now make life easier for cross-border trade players. These reforms were outlined by the Benin Customs under the leadership of Director General Charles Inoussa Sacca. Regarding the implementation of foreign trade, it should be noted that a single portal for all operations with the objective of “zero paper”, Securing State revenue through electronic payment and above all, improving the business climate. For the Pvi, there is a control of the customs value of the goods, tracking of goods in transit, inspection for certification of weights and values of goods etc.. All these explanations were welcomed by the audience..
Patrice ADJAHO