ISLAMABAD, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday emphasized the importance of taking comprehensive measures to eliminate corruption in customs operations. He stressed the need to remove unnecessary hurdles and utilize modern technology, including artificial intelligence and advanced equipment, to ensure the full enforcement of customs duties.
Chairing a meeting focused on the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and Pakistan Customs, the prime minister described the customs sector as the backbone of the country’s economy. He stated that reforms within the FBR and complete digitization would secure economic stability.
Prime Minister Shehbaz instructed the relevant authorities to ensure a third-party audit of reform initiatives in the FBR and other departments, consolidating all such projects under a single framework.
He directed efforts to increase revenue collection through enhanced enforcement measures and called for the establishment of a project management unit dedicated to reforms in the customs sector.
Addressing issues related to mis-invoicing, he stressed the need to resolve these problems and eliminate under-invoicing to protect Pakistan’s industries and products. He also requested detailed reports on revenue collection resulting from enforcement actions and called for the establishment of a regulatory framework for the operations of the shipping industry.
The prime minister emphasized the need for a third-party audit of the web-based one-customs system (WeBOC).
During the briefing on customs operations, it was reported that Pakistan Customs had fully automated its operations and engaged internationally renowned experts to implement reforms featuring modern AI-based systems.
It was noted that approximately 72.4 percent of imports and exports were cleared through the green channel. Pakistan Customs collected an additional Rs240 billion in revenue through valuation controls from July 2023 to June 2024, representing an 80% increase over the previous year’s collection.
Federal cabinet members Ahad Khan Cheema, Muhammad Aurangzeb, and Ali Pervaiz Malik, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Jahanzeb Khan, Attorney General Mansoor Awan, PM’s Coordinator Rana Ehsan Afzal, Member of the National Assembly Barrister Aqeel Malik, FBR Chairman Zubair Tiwana, and other senior officials attended the meeting.
