As the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) continues its journey to the various parishes islandwide, the Commissioner of Customs Velma Ricketts Walker leads the Customs team into the parish of St Thomas for the agency’s ninth parish engagement Customs Meets the Community, under the theme: ‘Reaching Our Customers Where They Are.’

The event will get underway at the Morant Villas hotel, in Morant Bay, on Wednesday, September 25, 2019, from 1:30 pm – 6:30 pm.

The mini expo, which will include booth displays, will start at 1:30 pm, and the town hall session will get underway at 4:00 pm.

The Customs Meets the Community parish engagement series are being held in order that the JCA can communicate more effectively with its customers, in keeping with its thrust to inform and educate stakeholders on a myriad of Customs-related matters.

“The agency recognises that strong partnerships, augmented by our collaborative approach, with other Border Regulatory Agencies (BRAs) can have a transformational impact on compliance, as our customers become more exposed to the various policies and procedures of the agency, and that of other BRAs.

This initiative also helps the JCA to better connect with a diverse range of Jamaicans who receive the opportunity to ask questions, state their concerns and give their feedback during the town hall segment of the engagement,” Ricketts Walker said.

The Customs team has so far, visited the parishes of St Elizabeth, St Catherine (Spanish Town, Portmore), Portland, St Ann, Westmoreland, Clarendon and St Mary.

The initiative is done in collaboration with the Social Development Commission (SDC).