Afghanistan Opens New Customs and Tax Academy

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Kabul, Afghanistan – Senior Afghan government officials and representatives from foreign embassies and the donor community gathered for the inauguration of the Afghanistan Customs and Tax Academy (ACTA), a training institute that intends to produce a new generation of customs officers equipped with the requisite skills to facilitate trade and collect customs duties at Afghanistan’s borders and airports.  The new recruits will attend a four-month training program, and they must meet strict evaluation standards prior to job placement.

“Customs officers perform one of the most challenging jobs in Afghanistan and they directly contribute to the country’s development,” said Ahmad Reshad Popal, Director General of Afghanistan Customs Department at the Ministry of Finance. “The opening of this new academy is a major step toward increasing professional service at our border crossings, which will assist with the fight against corruption and contribute to improved revenue generation for the state.”

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) supported the training institute through development of the curriculum, training modules on customs procedures, and short-term technical assistance.

“We congratulate the Afghanistan Customs and Tax Academy (ACTA) on the creation of this new training facility,” USAID Mission Director Herbert Smith said. “The Academy’s ambitious curriculum will produce professional officers capable of enforcing Afghanistan’s trade and customs regulations and protocols,” Smith added.

Members of the press and guests attending the event had the opportunity to tour the academy’s facilities, including computer labs equipped with World Customs Organization E-Learning modules. Academy staff demonstrated appropriate procedures and customs agent behavior at a simulated border crossing.

With almost $17 billion spent on development programs in Afghanistan since 2002, USAID provides the largest bilateral civilian assistance program to Afghanistan. USAID partners with the government and people of Afghanistan to ensure economic growth led by the country’s private sector, to establish a democratic and capable state governed by the rule of law, and to provide basic health and education services for all Afghans.