The Non-Intrusive Inspection cargo scanners have enabled customs to effectively and efficiently inspect over 1400 consignments daily, the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has said.
Ian Rumanyika, the acting spokesperson of URA told The Nile Post that the equipment detects concealed, undeclared and miss-declared goods with an ability to penetrate 300mm of steel and detect 3mm of a suspended wire.
To this effect, Rumanyika said officers at Malaba One Stop Border Post (OSBP) singled-out a tonne of smuggled rice hidden in the chassis of a truck carrying steel rolls, as they inspected cargo using NII equipment.
He noted that with the scanner tip-off, Malaba enforcement team swung into action, impounding the suspected truck.
He explained that the practice of smuggling rice and wheat in truck chassis has grown into a habit for truck drivers, but the eye of the scanner is like a flood-light that exposes their agendas and protects the government from revenue leakages.
"The use of this technology assists in deterrence of illegitimate trade while facilitating compliant clients,"he stated.
He said the scanners also protect the community at the border and the country at large from the dangers of radiation exposure by deploying Radiation Portal Monitors (RPM) to inspect every consignment for any radiation sources in imported cargo.