Customs chief leaving the MRA

Mr. Stephen Mendes, Director Customs Department at the Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA) since 2009, has been appointed as Resident Customs Adviser of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at the Afritac Centre, which will soon be opening in Mauritius.

Mr Mendes leave the MRA at the end of this month Under his leadership the Customs Department has continued to improve and to strike the right balance between facilitating trade and ensuring that revenue is protected. A spokesperson for the MRA yesterday told NEWSNOW that the organisation was grateful to Mr Mendes for his contribution over the past two years.

“We put on record the contribution of Mr. Mendes in introducing a number of measures to help to build a constructive relationship between the trading community and customs, including regular stakeholder meetings, regular information sessions for the logistics industry and the introduction of a 24-hour duty officer to help when importers experience clearance difficulties.”

Mr Stephen Mendes, 47, holds a Certificate in Business Studies and an MSC in Development Management. He has wide experience in the Customs environment and has worked on various projects for several countries.

Before joining the MRA he was on assignment as Standard & Training Coordinator for the EU Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine where he worked on the introduction of trade facilitation methodology in line with EU and WTO standards.

He has some 18 years of experience in Customs and has, amongst many achievements, reviewed customs functions and procedures in St Vincent & the Grenadines in his capacity as Customs Modernisation Adviser for the Commonwealth Secretariat (UK).