The General Authority of Customs is intensifying expansion efforts at the Abu Samra border crossing, according to an official.
Cited in the GAC’s monthly newsletter, Yousef Ahmad Alhammadi, Assistant Director of Land Customs Administration, stated that the development and expansion work plan is underway and will cover several aspects to ensure smooth passenger mobility across the border.
“Adapting and increasing the capacity of the inspection platforms for goods, adapting and increasing the capacity of the inspection yard for travellers are some of the expansion works going on,” Alhammadi stated.
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He added that the GAC uses modern devices for inspection and links customs systems with the relevant authorities to facilitate and reduce the time of release for travellers and merchants at the border.
Abu Samra, Qatar’s only land border, links Qatar with neighbours Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf region.
Recently, Qatar Airways announced it has teamed up with flydubai, Kuwait Airways, Oman Air, and Saudia to offer Match Day Shuttle flights for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Organisers expect around 1.5 million visitors for the World Cup, and according to FIFA, Saudi Arabia was among the largest ticket demand in the last phase of ticket requests by the football governing body.
Authorities disclosed last year that the total development works of the main crossing are scheduled to be completed by the third quarter of 2022 in preparation for the World Cup. The border will be expanded to twice the capacity, including several new buildings and corridors and truck checking points serving 500 trucks at a time, covering 190,000sqm.
Meanwhile, the GAC also disclosed that it had completed 302,399 total released data during May. The figures indicate a slight drop compared to April (327,411) but more than March and February, which stood at 301,449 and 249,646, respectively.
The Customs Administration of Air Cargo and Private Airports completed 275,670 data, while the Maritime Customs Administration recorded 22,407. The GAC also released 97 percent of its data in an hour, while the number of data transferred to government agencies stood at 25,234.
Also, in May, the USA and India remained the top importing and exporting countries to Qatar, respectively. The Ministry of Municipality’s Livestock Administration department bagged the Best Government Agency Entity in Average Time of Release, recording 1.80 hours per release time.
The GAC also recorded 9.15kg of marijuana as its biggest seizure of the month, making 178 seizures in total.
