Mozambique Customs Modernisation Programme, including preparation for the integration of Customs into a Central Revenue
The reform of the Customs department in Mozambique, a project which saw Crown Agents appointed to take over the management of the country's entire Customs operations, has become a catalyst for further far-reaching fiscal reform on Mozambique itself and a model for change throughout the developing world.
Mozambique's early decision to reform its Customs service had three main imperatives: to provide more revenue for its programme of development and poverty alleviation, to facilitate legitimate trade and industry, and to achieve long-term sustainability.
Year on year since the project began in 1997 Customs revenue has increased - without any increase in tariffs. The performance of the restructured Customs service has been positive and essential, contributing almost half of Mozambique's domestic revenue.
An independent report on Mozambique's economy has concluded that Maputo port had received a much-needed boost from the project, making it one of "the most efficient terminals in Africa attracting merchandise from the rest of southern Africa for export".
Mozambique's Customs reforms have been central to its plans for modernising the wider public sector. Over the past eighteen months we have been helping the Customs department to integrate into a new central revenue authority, alongside VAT and direct tax.