The Fiji Revenue and Customs Service has recorded an increase in the number of detection related to revenue invasion, leading to financial penalties that support the economy.
This was highlighted by the organisation after it received IT equipment worth more than $100,000 from Australia this week.
According to the FRCS through the delivery of this equipment, Fiji plans to establish modern targeting and profiling capabilities to minimise the use of cargo and other means of transportation for drug trafficking, transnational organised criminal activities and other forms of illegal trade to ensure facilitation of legitimate trade and promote secured global trade supply chain.
It was noted that since the launch of the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC) and World Customs Organization (WCO) Container Control Program (CCP) in August 2020, Australian representatives in Fiji have worked with FRCS to build an IT infrastructure that supports the targeting and profiling efforts of the FRCS National Border Cargo Targeting Centre (NBCTC).
The FRCS stated that the operations of these units were centred around the virtual border and the IT equipment given by the Australian government would greatly enhance the capability of these units in having real-time access to advance critical cargo information and systems.
Meanwhile, since the establishment of these units, there have been more than 50 successful interceptions, including methamphetamine, weapons, cargo of environmental risk, illicit medicines and other border security-related elements.
