The CEO/Commissioner of Customs, Mrs. Velma Ricketts Walker, has over seventeen (17) years experience in Customs Administration, Trade Facilitation, Risk Analysis, Strategic Planning, International Trade, Security, Compliance and Enforcement.
Mrs. Walker started at Jamaica Customs in 1999, and rose through the ranks to become Assistant Commissioner, Compliance and Enforcement in 2011.
Before returning to the organisation as CEO/Commissioner on April 10th, 2017, Mrs. Walker worked at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), as Revenue Administration Advisor, where she assisted regional Customs Administrations with the development and strengthening of their risk management programmes and organisational strategic reform.
Mrs. Walker is an experienced management professional, highly result oriented with strong motivational, coaching and negotiation skills. She has comprehensive knowledge, training and expertise in trade facilitation programmes, risk management, voluntary compliance programmes, intelligence, investigative techniques, enforcement operations, project management, operations management, communication and customer service delivery.
She is an IMF certified and trained Tax Administration Diagnostic Assessment Tool (TADAT) Assessor.
She now leads the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) strategic reform program and chairs the World Customs Organisation (WCO) Capacity Building Committee.