Published 30 January 2020
Buckie Got It, St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
CUSTOMS AND EXCISE DEPARTMENT ROLLS OUT INDUCTION COURSE FOR NEW AND PROSPECTIVE OFFICERS
Basseterre, St. Kitts, January 30, 2020 (SKNIS): New officers of the St. Kitts-Nevis Customs and Excise Department will undergo a six-week induction course starting in February 2020, a new initiative, said Elmar Martines, Assistant Comptroller of Customs for Investigations.
“The purpose of this inductions course is to ensure that new officers get training in specific customs areas such as evaluation and classification of commodities, warehousing, and intro to the Customs Act, among other topics,” he said during his appearance on “Working for You” on January 29.
Mr. Martines noted that training the officers would help them to understand their roles in the institution, thus making them more effective in their duties.
“Our goal is to have our officers well-rounded in terms of training, not just in regard to customs topics, practices or procedures, but we want them to be well-rounded law enforcement officers because we are a law enforcement agency,” he said.
He noted that the induction course was necessary.
“Senior Management saw the need for the induction course as a means of preparation for the new Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council (CCLEC) training; which would make them officially trained customs officers if they pass,” he said.
The CCLEC course is designed to train junior officers from the St. Kitts and Nevis Customs and Excise Department and Her Majesty’s Customs and Excise Department of Montserrat.
The Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council was established as an informal association of Customs administrations within the Caribbean region during the early 1970s. The CCLEC comprises 38 Customs Administrations of which 36 are signatories to the CCLEC Memorandum of Understanding.
