A specialist customs operation in the leather-producing region of Guanajuato has, so far, failed to deliver the boost the local industry hoped for.

The ‘interior port’ operation, on the region’s main highway and close to its international airport, opened in May 2006 with the government advising importers and exporters to use it for customs clearance of leather and footwear products.

 But the expected efficiencies have failed to materialise, largely because all customs checks are being carried out manually. The facility still has no X-ray scanning equipment. Officials are checking one shipment in ten.