The Ministry of Finance and the Romanian Customs Authority (AVR) inaugurated at the Galați-Giurgiulești Customs Office the first of 26 scanners designed to reduce tax evasion and trafficking in drugs and dangerous substances at customs points. The installation of the first scanner in the Giurgiulești Customs Office, intended for motor vehicles, is just part of the Ministry of Finance and the Romanian Customs Authority’s effort to modernise the customs infrastructure and manage borders efficiently in the interest of national security.
„Today marks a crucial moment in our efforts to combat illegal activities and modernize the customs system. We are firmly committed to eradicating illicit phenomena and constantly improving efficiency and transparency in this area. In particular, we focus on strengthening the fight against smuggling. The introduction of these new scanners is a strategic move in this direction. They will revolutionise the way we check the contents of means of transport, allowing us to carry out faster and more accurate inspections. This technology using artificial intelligence will not only strengthen our national security, but will also help to make the fight against fraud more effective. Once we have all 26 scanners operational at the 12 most important border points in the country, we will cover more than 85% of the flow of entries into customs. Together with the implementation of e-invoice, e-stamp, and the introduction of telemetric information in the e-transport system, we are building a robust ecosystem to deter any attempt of fraud and smuggling”, explained Minister of Finance Marcel Bolos.
The scanner in the Giurgiulesti Customs Office is the first of 26 to be put into operation under the project „Equipping border customs offices with vehicle and container scanning systems (security systems) and setting up the National Centre for Image Analysis, which will integrate the vehicle and container scanning systems of the AVR”.
The overall objectives of the project are:
to make customs control of means of transport more efficient by equipping customs authorities at border crossing points with security systems;
integration of the security systems in the National Image Analysis Centre and real-time monitoring of the image analysis of the scanning results of the scanning equipment;
improving the quality and efficiency of the services provided by operational control teams (border and mobile teams) to ensure the security and safety of citizens and to protect the financial interests of the Union and the Member States”.
„The use of this scanning system will contribute to increasing the security of the EU’s external border and to making customs control of means of transport at border crossings more efficient. The use of this system will give AVR an advantage in the fight against smuggling, customs fraud and will also lead to a reduction of waiting times at border crossings”, said Marcel Mutescu, President of the Romanian Customs Authority.