After brilliant performance in 2025: Customs DG urges Adamawa sector staff to up professionalism, efficiency.

He gave the instruction during a working session with personnel from the Adamawa Customs Sector on Wednesday, January 14. This was on the sidelines of the launch of the State budget for 2026 financial year by the Minister of Finance, Louis Paul Motaze.

The strategic consultation meeting organised at the premises of the Adamawa Sector Office provided an opportunity to review the sector’s activities and results obtained in 2025 as well as give directives for the new financial year. 

During the meeting, it was revealed that the Adamawa Customs Sector mobilised revenues of over 515.3 million FCFA in the year 2025.

Taking the floor, the Customs Director General praised the Head of the Adamawa Customs Sector and his subordinates for their various contributions to the overall performance of the Customs Directorate General in 2025.

He then called on them to up their professionalism and efficiency in order to consolidate the achievements of 2025 and more importantly meet the targets of this year.

He stressed that there is room for improvement in order to achieve an ambitious strategy and upward performance in 2026.  

While reviewing the sector’s 2025 performance earlier in his speech, the Head of Adamawa Customs Sector, Jean Marie Toukam, said in terms of surveillance, the organic units of the Adamawa Customs Sector and the HALCOMI teams made numerous seizures of contraband and prohibited goods. 

He said the seizures include fuel, textiles, pharmaceutical products, construction materials, passenger vehicles, motorcycles, food products, beverages and endangered wildlife species. 

In terms of transit, he told the Customs DG that operations proceeded normally at the Ngaoundéré railway platform and the Dang checkpoint.  

On behalf of the staff under his command, Toukam pledged their commitment to improve the handling of goods, ensure the proper application of the tax bases for goods and encourage the rapid customs clearance of seized commercial goods. 

He equally promised to strengthen controls on the custody and movement of goods and to combat illicit trafficking at the borders and within the national territory even more effectively. 

In addition, they committed to forging partnerships with civic users and raising awareness among smugglers to encourage them to return en masse to tax compliance. 

The operational staff assured that collaboration with security forces, local authorities and HALCOMI III teams will also be an essential lever for improving budgetary and non-budgetary performance in 2026. 

Meanwhile, it was revealed that new strategies will be developed and validated during the first annual coordination meeting of the heads of services and units of the Adamawa Customs Sector to ensure all its goals are achieved.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3679 of Tuesday January 20, 2026