Staff Reporter
THE National Council Standing Committee on Public Accounts and Economy undertook oversight visits to the Customs and Excise operations of the Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) in selected regions of Omaheke, //Kharas, Erongo, and Ohangwena from 10 to 21 June 2024.
The objectives of the meeting included, among other things, appraising NamRA’s financial resources, administrative operations, human resources, infrastructure (offices and accommodation), and capital projects; and assessing the efficiency, effectiveness, impact, and applicability of taxation, revenue, and customs duties collection.
According to the report from the committee, the agency informed the Committee that a total of N$71 million was recovered from refunds that were paid unlawfully, while advising those who were refunded unlawfully to make repayment arrangements.
The report detailed that some of the employees involved in paying refunds unlawfully have resigned while others are still employed and promised to stop the practice.
In its courtesy visit to Omaheke, the committee was appraised by the Governor of Omaheke Region, Pijoo Nganate, who informed the Committee that the region recorded 300 cases of malnutrition from January to June 2024.
The governor appealed to the Committee to look into the issue of environmental tax for motor vehicles that people being repatriated from Botswana to Namibia are subjected to pay at the border. According to the Governor, returnees are only exempt from paying environmental tax on one vehicle per family. The Committee advised the revenue agency to change this practice to cater to Namibian families still being repatriated from Botswana.
The governor also indicated that local people are complaining about the way they are treated by NamRA officials, particularly at the Hosea Kutako International Airport, where the manner in which bags are unpacked is inhumane and cumbersome.
The governor urged NamRA to look into the matter.
The Committee learned that vehicles older than 12 years cannot be registered in Namibia, hence they are exported to Botswana where they are allowed to be registered.
The committee added that since Botswana allows vehicles older than 12 years to be registered in their country, such vehicles are then re-imported into Namibia where they are only subjected to tax on the value of the car, thus causing Namibia to lose out on much-needed direct import tax at the expense of Botswana. The committee asked for a revision of this.
In the Ohangwena region, the committee was appraised by the governor, who mentioned that fuel smuggling, locally known as “Ngungula,” in the region is rampant and that local business people with fueling service stations are complaining every day because they are out of business due to the lower prices of fuel smuggled from Angola.
Giving recommendations on visits to the different sites, the Committee concluded that NamRA should look into its current staff complement deployed at border posts in order to meet the demands of the workload, especially those operating 24 hours. The Committee further concluded that instead of constructing prefabricated houses for staff at border posts, NamRA must invest in proper quality houses and a sufficient number of houses to avoid the scenario of employees sharing houses.
In terms of Namport, the committee shared that there is a need for NamRA to procure a boat for sea patrol, thus enabling monitoring of the activities of vessels that dock 10—20 km due to space and size. The Committee further concluded that the agency should engage the relevant ministry to review tax laws related to incentives extended to EPZ regimes, which facilitate tax avoidance practices in the mining and fishing industries.
In terms of the Noordoewer border post, the committee recommended that NamRA fix the fence at the Noordoewer border post to avoid smuggling and ensure the effectiveness of collecting revenue. NamRA should also seriously address the issue of ablution facilities and the sewage system at the Noordoewer border post.
In Oshikango, the committee said that there is a need for NamRA to fence off the border by constructing a 20 km fence on both the east and west sides of the Oshikango border post to reduce the movement of undeclared goods along the borders and maximize revenue collection.
It also added that NamRA must engage banks on the issue of delayed processing of electronic fund transfer (EFT) transactions at borders, which affects trade facilitation as trucks are delayed awaiting payments that only reflect the following day or after a weekend.
Picture for illustrative purposes only.
