The Tribune

Several brokers have argued it is “easier to lie on Customs” rather than admit problems with its new Electronic Single Window (ESW) are of the industry’s own making.

The Ministry of Finance, in a statement issued yesterday, quoted several Customs brokers attributing the problems with the electronic import clearance platform - known as Click2Clear - to the private sectors failure to attend training sessions and properly understand its functions before the October 1 launch.

Suzanne Watson, an in-house broker with AID, said: “Brokers that did not go to the classes did themselves a disservice. Turnout was not as great as I think Customs wanted it to be. Many of the complaints are a matter of training for the end user. It is a different technology and it requires more information, so it is important for brokers to be trained in the system.

“Once I got over the learning curve, it was smooth. At first our issue was with the size of the declarations, because ours have 700-800 lines. However, now we have no issues with that. I attended multiple broker classes in July and August for the hands-on training and that was very helpful for me. Customs even offered to do an in-house training at our offices. Plus, we had help from Crimson Logic, the software development company, Superintendent Hudson and chief Customs officer Albury from the Customs IT Team.”

Antoinette Higgs, a licensed broker with A&S Customs Brokerage, added: “There are many people who are not computer literate and they have to upgrade their skills. They should not blame Customs for that. Customs had so many training sessions. They sent e-mails upon e-mails inviting brokers to free training: For a lot of the sessions, the classrooms were empty. People were not taking the new system seriously, and a lot of brokers did not take advantage of the opportunities to learn.”

“There are people who are blaming the system when, in truth, many brokers are simply taking on work that they cannot handle. It is easier to lie on Customs than to admit that. I don’t mind saying it publicly because it is the truth,” she added.

“Everyone is on a learning curve, but not everyone is taking responsibility for their level of proficiency. What is not being said or acknowledged is that many brokers are not up to the level of proficiency that they ought to be. They may be using manual releases or hiding the fact that they are overwhelmed or not technologically savvy,” said Geannie Moss, Comptroller of Customs.

“Some are failing to communicate to managers or business owners that their IT systems are not up to the level they ought to be. In fairness, Customs is being blamed for many issues that sit squarely at the feet of brokers and businesses.

“We find it very unfortunate that a few vocal clients are drowning out the sentiments of the majority of users for whom the Click2Clear system is working. We have had growing pains, but we are working through technical issues in an aggressive and proactive way. We welcome the criticism. We just want it to be constructive, true and fair.”

Her comments came as Customs urged brokers to attend free training sessions and refresher courses that will be offered in the New Year to help improve the user experience with Click2Clear.

The Department added that since the summer of 2018, it has trained 430 couriers and brokers in Nassau, along with hundreds of other professionals in the import industry in New Providence and across the Family Islands.

Customs, though, said some brokers are finding the system to be more labour intensive because they have a steeper digital learning curve and lack sufficient training. It added that the system requires more information and a higher level of accuracy, but said brokers who took advantage of the free training sessions and were already computer savvy are performing better than others.

Acknowledging that there have been technical issues with the transition to the new online system, Customs said some of the problems stem from human error or a lack of familiarity with procedures.

All Customs officers who work in operations – from managers to line staff – last week had to participate in a mandatory training refresher on Click2Clear. By taking such a proactive approach, Customs expects to see fewer errors made by officers moving forward, such as unwarranted rejections.

The system also tracks the actions of individual Customs officers to bring more internal accountability and control. This tracking is available to end users as well.