Customs Director-General Presents Reform Vision to APN

Major General Abdelhafid Bakhouche, the Director-General of Customs, presented a series of reforms for the sector to the National People's Assembly (APN) during a session focused on the 2027 Finance Law. This engagement, held with the APN's Finance and Budget Committee and chaired by its vice-president Abdenour Belarbi, centered on key provisions and measures within the draft law concerning customs operations. The presentation underscored a vision prioritizing digitalization and the reduction of port processing times to foster greater economic efficiency.

During the session, Major General Bakhouche outlined articles 153 to 176 of the draft law, which address the functioning and regulations of customs. He also provided an overview of significant achievements by customs services in revenue collection and the modernization of sector management, noting a substantial evolution in these areas over recent years. The reformative vision, as reaffirmed, is primarily guided by efforts to simplify procedures, establish a unified single window system, and continuously deploy digitalization across operations.

These strategic actions are designed to accelerate logistics, significantly reduce the time required for customs clearance of goods, and elevate the quality of services offered to economic operators. The ultimate goals include strengthening transparency and enhancing the overall performance and efficacy of customs operations. Discussions with parliamentary members also addressed critical concerns such as concrete measures to alleviate congestion at port infrastructures, accelerate the release of goods, implement robust control mechanisms against tax evasion, and ensure data protection and cybersecurity.