• Objective: improve security in Senegalese ports, airports and land borders
• Approach: Utilize mobile scanners to improve security and speed up inspection process
• Results: improved trade, better revenues and enhanced security

Background
Senegal is considered a model of Customs modernization. Our project commenced in 2001 with the installation of a 2.5 MeV mobile scanner at the port of Dakar for one year, as a demonstration. As a result of this, the Senegalese Government issued an international tender for implementing a mobile scanner.

Cotecna successfully won this tender and in October 2003 installed a 3.8 MeV mobile scanner with a steel penetration capacity of 260mm. In May 2004, Cotecna installed a second 3.8 MeV scanner. The selection of this scanner was the result of a detailed feasibility study carried out by Cotecna.

Mobile scanners benefit Customs and clients alike
Mobile scanners offer significant benefits to Customs and their clients, from reducing clearance time to improving revenues and security. The three core benefits of mobile scanners are outlined below:

• To facilitate trade
  Following the implementation of the scanners in Senegal, inspection time was reduced to 12 minutes. This significant increase to Customs efficiency meant positive impacts for legitimate importers and exporters alike, rewarding compliance with faster clearance times.
• To protect revenue
  Enhanced and more efficient collection of duties and taxes led to an overall positive impact on customs revenues with reduced costs through the more efficient allocation of customs resources.
• To enhance security
  More effective use of advanced technology to detect non-compliance and enforce standards through product sampling techniques were direct results of the integration of Scanning and Cotecna’s Computerized Risk Management System (CRMS) for a fully comprehensive trade management regime.