The Ashanti Regional Command, Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), realized total revenue of GH¢373.102 million as at June 2019.

Assistant Commissioner (AC) Frederick Yankey, the Regional Customs Division Command, said their target was GH¢375.447 million, translating into a negative variance of GH¢2.345, which represented 0.62 percent.

Last year, the Command raked in a mid-year total revenue of GH¢320.769 million.

AC Yankey, who was briefing the media in Kumasi, said a comparative analysis of the revenue collected inferred that by year on year comparison, an amount of GH¢52.333 million more was raked in as revenue.

Traditionally, he said, the petroleum sector had been the major source of revenue for the Division, as well as import duties and levies.

The GRA Regional Customs Division Commander appealed to the government to provide more vehicles for patrol duties.

A second look, he said, ought to also be taken at the government policy to close the Customs barriers in some parts of the Region, especially the Kubease barrier, in the Ejisu Municipality.

“We should at least allow some very critically important barriers to be opened, to enhance operations, especially in Kumasi, where we have no boundary with foreign countries,” AC Yankey pleaded.

He hinted that an Action Plan had been put in place by the Division to step up efforts to further improve on its operational efficiency and effectiveness.

This was in line with the agenda to enable the Division to rake in more revenue in order to achieve the government’s vision of ‘Ghana beyond Aid’.