The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has purchased 39 new scanners that will be stationed at border points to counter smuggling and under declaration of goods.
The scanners, which were purchased at a cost of Shs103 billion, are faster, non-intrusive and have limited human interface.
The first batch of the scanners arrived in the country last week and another 18 are on the way.
URA Commissioner-General John Musinguzi Rujoki said once installed, the scanners will cover at least 80 percent of Uganda’s entry and exit points.
During the celebrations to mark URA’s 30 years of existence, President Museveni said the tax body refused to heed his advice to fix scanners at all of the country’s entry and exit points.
Musinguzi said now that they have the scanners, they will mobilise more taxes that will finance government expenditure.
“With the scanners, we will aim higher so we can achieve the GDP targets and even exceed them in the long run. We had projected improvement by use of technology, and now that we have scanners, we may exceed 18% tax to GDP target after three years,” he said.
The commissioner for customs, Abel Kagumire, said the scanners will also help to boost Uganda’s international trade facilitation by streamlining and enhancing management of cargo to eliminate illegal entries of goods.
He said the scanners will also help to maintain the international trade chain, protect the environment from contaminated items and effectively supervise the transit of containerized cargo.