This years first edition is packed with articles across the globe, featuring a variety of topics including the topic of Partnerships.
To access the Magazine, follow this link
Source: World Customs Organisation website, 26 February 2024
In December 2021, the World Customs Organization (WCO) and the European Union (EU) successfully signed a partnership agreement for a comprehensive programme on the implementation and application of rules of origin (RoO) for enhanced Intra-African trade, commonly referred to as the EU-WCO Rules of Origin RoO Africa Programme. This 48 months initiative aims to support the African continent to improve its capacity to deal with rules of origin and ultimately to support the harmonized and well-coordinated implementation and application of the rules of origin under Annex 2 of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and other regional and international commitments.
The AfCFTA is a landmark achievement in fostering regional integration to unify the African continent and further its socio-economic development. Under the AfCFTA Agreement, it is the rules of origin – establishing the nationality of products produced in Africa – that will determine whether preferential trade liberalization can be a game changer for Africa’s industrialization.
The EU-WCO RoO Africa Programme was launched on 19-20 July 2022 in Accra, Ghana, complementing and building up on the EU-WCO HS Africa Programme success.
The Programme provides tailored-made demand driven technical assistance, with an emphasis on training, and includes diagnostic and needs assessments, forums and consultations, Guidelines, Manuals and Standard operating Procedures and implementation of flagship initiatives.
The EU-WCO Rules of Origin Africa Programme aims to facilitating and increasing intra-African trade, trade between Africa and Europe, and between Africa and the rest of the world. The Programme is a concrete step taken by the European Union and the World Customs Organization in consultation with key stakeholders to support African partners in the implementation of the AfCFTA.
The outcome of the Programme is that beneficiaries at continental (AfCFTA Secretariat and African Union Commission), regional (African Regional Economic Communities – RECs) and national level (African Customs Administrations, Government Administrations and Private Sector) implement and apply the rules of origin in compliance with Annex 2 of the AfCFTA and in line with international commitments and best practices.
For more details, please contact EU-WCORoOAfrica.Program@wcoomd.org.
On 26 January each year, the Customs community comes together to celebrate International Customs Day. As we gather to commemorate this important occasion, I am filled with a profound sense of honour and anticipation in my first year as Secretary General. While this year’s celebration is especially significant for me, its wider importance in part comes from it marking the launch of our new theme: “Customs Engaging Traditional and New Partners with Purpose”.
This year, we are embarking on a path that challenges us to both reaffirm our longstanding partnerships and to boldly forge new alliances. Our world has changed dramatically over the last decade and continues to do so, presenting us with unprecedented challenges, including rapid technological advances, environmental and health crises, and complex geopolitical and economic dynamics. These conditions require that the global Customs community take a forward-thinking approach to its work and seek solutions that are not just based on its own knowledge and resources, but are supplemented by the support of stakeholders.
The theme for 2024 is a strategic call to action, urging us to broaden our perspectives, think creatively, and embrace innovative approaches. This is essential for Customs administrations to maintain their role in facilitating global trade and ensuring security in a rapidly evolving environment.
In 2024, we focus on deepening and enriching our established relationships to ensure they continue to be strong, relevant, and mutually beneficial. At the same time, we aim to actively seek and establish new connections with a wider range of stakeholders, including financial institutions, environmental organizations, NGOs, and academic institutions.
These new partnerships will infuse our efforts with fresh perspectives and innovative solutions. Our collaboration this year is about aligning all our partnerships with the overarching mission and values of our Customs administrations. We aim to ensure they contribute meaningfully to our objectives of trade facilitation, border security, and the resilience of global supply chains.
Incorporating a broad spectrum of voices and perspectives into our strategies is also paramount. Doing so will ensure that our strategies are comprehensive and more resonant with the global community we serve.
We are also committed to continuously evaluating and refining our partnerships to maintain their effectiveness and relevance. Such a dynamic approach is vital in an ever-changing global landscape, and increases our ability to achieve meaningful results in line with our critical mission.
Lastly, as we think about the enablers of our engagement, we must look to the value of cutting-edge technologies and data analytics. These will enhance our understanding and engagement with partners, thereby increasing our responsiveness and effectiveness.
As we begin this year and take this day to reflect on our mission, our accomplishments, and our way forward, I hope that our efforts – as Customs and with partners – will advance us toward a safe, prosperous, and inclusive future.
I am deeply appreciative of your support and dedication to making International Customs Day a noteworthy occasion, and for promoting and acting upon our 2024 theme throughout the year.
I wish you a productive and engaging International Customs Day.
Ian Saunders
Secretary General
Source: WCO, 26 January 2024
The latest version of the Coordinated Border Management (CBM) Compendium contains a number of new features and aims to comprehensively support Customs administrations, Cross-Border Regulatory Agencies (CBRAs) and international organizations in strengthening implementation of CBM in various fields. The concept of CBM has existed for many years and refers to a coordinated approach by border control agencies, both domestic and international, in the context of seeking greater efficiencies in managing trade and travel flows, while maintaining a balance with compliance requirements.
The updated version of the Compendium briefly describes various WCO instruments and tools that are relevant to further supporting CBM implementation. Among these are the Revised Kyoto Convention, Risk Management, Single Window, the WCO Data Model and the SAFE Framework of Standards. It also recognizes that CBRAs are guided in their work by other international standards, and that it is necessary for both Customs and CBRAs to acquire a working knowledge of each other’s standards in order to arrive at a common understanding that enhances CBM.
The Compendium also includes a new section on cooperation between the WCO and the UPU. This section sets out potential opportunities for cooperation between Customs administrations and designated postal operators, including the exchange of advance electronic data aimed at improving risk management, trade facilitation and control of postal items, particularly in the context of growing e-commerce via post.
Furthermore, the updated Compendium includes (in Annex I) examples of CBM-related practice and experience in the context of two countries, namely, Botswana and Finland. There is scope for other examples to be added during the next review/update of the Compendium.
The Customs-Police Cooperation Handbook, developed by the WCO and INTERPOL, has also been included in the Compendium (appended as Annex 2). The Handbook presents a clear approach for Customs administrations to assess their current level of efficiency and effectiveness in cooperating with their respective Police authorities, and encourages Customs administrations to explore avenues to further strengthen cooperation.
Against this backdrop, the WCO stands ready to support its Members with the implementation of the updated version of the CBM Compendium, with a view to improving cross-border trade and ensuring the security of international supply chains.
Download the new version of CBM Compendium here!
Source: WCO, 16 April 2023
Each year, International Customs Day provides an opportunity for the WCO Secretariat to invite the Organization’s Members to focus on a theme it considers relevant to the Customs community and its partners. In 2023, under the slogan “Nurturing the Next Generation: Promoting a Culture of Knowledge-sharing and Professional Pride in Customs”, the Secretariat is inviting Members to look at how they support newly-recruited officers, facilitate the sharing of knowledge, and heighten the sense of pride in being part of this institution and of the global Customs community.
This is about placing human capital, and especially the new generation, at the heart of the transformation of Customs – an approach the WCO has been advocating for a number of years. Young Customs officers often have particular strengths, but they need to acquire specific, and often tacit, knowledge and know-how. This approach to learning must be rooted in the culture of the administration, holding true throughout the officers’ careers. It requires not only dynamic inter- generational relationships, but also an outward-looking attitude, characterized by exchanges with the actors engaged in the movement of goods and passengers, as well as with service providers and with academia.
However, it has to be recognized that certain Customs organizations do not have the processes and methodologies in place for managing knowledge and ensuring that it is transmitted. In 2023, Customs administrations are therefore being invited to focus on this issue and develop a knowledge management system which fosters the identification and provision of knowledge and know-how in all their forms: reports and other documentation, training courses, whether online or in-person, forums, mentoring programmes, work placements, exchanges between services, magazines and newsletters, among others.
Another interesting approach is to extend collaboration among Customs stakeholders and collect multi-disciplinary views. For this purpose, some administrations collaborate with academia and participate in think tanks. This will ensure that Customs knowledge is acquired through the rigorous analysis of data, and is supported by expert opinion, skills and expertise. Knowledge acquired in this way can be a valuable resource for decision-making.
Customs must avoid the loss of organisational memory, to ensure that mistakes are not repeated and experience is transmitted between departments and to the next generation.
By creating a stimulating work environment and offering learning opportunities to their officers, Customs administrations can not only attract and retain talent, but also enhance their officers’ sense of professional pride. It is often said that the new generation are searching for meaning; working in Customs is a noble mission, whose fulfilment is essential for the wellbeing of nations.
As the reputation of an organization depends largely on its employees, it is important that they take pride in their work, and that the way their work connects with the government’s vision is clearly explained. To achieve this, Customs administrations must increase their visibility, not only among their natural partners but also among those – such as decision-makers and the general public – who may be less familiar with the multi-faceted role of Customs, and less aware of the challenges faced by Customs and the constraints it has to manage.
I have every confidence that Customs administrations will get to grips with this year’s theme and I invite them to present information, during meetings of WCO working bodies which address this theme, during the events we organize throughout the year and in our various publications, about practices and measures they have introduced.
I wish you all a happy International Customs Day!
Kunio Mikuriya
WCO Secretary General 26 January 2023
The World Customs Organization (WCO) issues its 2021 Illicit Trade Report (ITR), an annual publication which offers a comprehensive study of illicit trade flows through an in-depth analysis of seizure data and case studies voluntarily submitted by Member Customs administrations worldwide. The information captured in the ITR provides essential insight into the occurrences of illicit trade, thereby assisting Customs administrations in understanding trends and patterns and making enlightened decisions to secure cross-border trade.
This year, the analysis provided in this Report is based on data collected from 138 Member administrations. Previously composed of six sections, the Report now covers seven key areas of risk in the context of Customs enforcement: Anti-money laundering and terrorist financing; Cultural heritage; Drugs; Environment; IPR, health and safety; Revenue; and Security.
Overall, this 2021 Report largely focuses on the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the flows of illicit trade worldwide and how criminal organizations have adapted and shifted transport and shipment modes of smuggled goods. One common denominator to the different areas covered in this Report, is the increased use of online marketplaces and social media to accommodate both demand and supply during the health crisis. Consequently, seizures in mail consignments are seeing an important increase.
The analysis contained in this Report is mainly based on the collection of data from the WCO Customs Enforcement Network (CEN) — a database of worldwide Customs seizures and offences. The CEN is a vital resource, allowing all WCO Members to access a critical mass of information for analysis of illicit trafficking in the various areas of Customs’ competence.
However, the CEN database relies heavily on voluntary submissions by Members hence the quantity and quality of the data submitted to the system has its limitations. To overcome these shortcomings and to complement the CEN dataset, the WCO has undertaken a review of the Illicit Trade Report and its methodology. This is an ongoing process and work is still underway until a final product can be delivered next year.
However, as part of this new methodology, the data and information sources used to elaborate this Report has been enlarged to include various open sources. These sources include official government media outlets, reports published online by Customs administrations and international organizations, and a survey elaborated by the WCO in order to collect additional data from its Members and from its Regional Intelligence Liaison Offices (RILOs).
“The importance of comprehensive data analysis is indisputably a key component to support effective and efficient Customs enforcement activities”, says Dr. Kunio Mikuriya, WCO Secretary General. “The Illicit Trade Report is a pioneer in terms of data collection and analysis for over twenty years, and as a strong believer in the power of data and Customs digital transformation, I am pleased that we now have the in-house resources and technology to offer such in-depth analysis, further supported by open source information, and the most recent and intelligible data visualizations for this edition of the Report”.
The WCO has published the 98th edition of WCO News, the Organization’s magazine aimed at the global Customs community, providing a selection of informative articles that bring the international Customs and trade world to life.
This edition’s “Dossier” focuses on ongoing discussions and initiatives that aim to “green” trade as well as on the role of Customs in supporting this ambition. Given that one question that comes up repeatedly is how to increase the available data for environmentally friendly goods and ensure they are specified by name under their own Harmonized System (HS) code, the Dossier also provides answers to some of the most common queries about the HS and how to tailor it to meet changing needs.
The “Panorama” section looks at a broad variety of initiatives such as developing an anti-corruption strategy, building Customs-Business partnership, launching research and development programmes and placing scientists at ports of entry to identify unknown substances.
The “Focus” section brings together articles dealing with gender equality and diversity. The WCO Secretariat presents the latest developments at the WCO in these areas, while two administrations share their experience of creating an inclusive workplace culture where diversity is celebrated and everyone is treated fairly.
Lastly, in the “Point of View” section representatives from the private sector share highlights of some technological breakthroughs aimed at improving Customs controls while facilitating trade and, in one case, protecting importers’ information.
The 26th/27th Meetings of the SAFE Working Group (SWG) were held successfully from 11 to 14 April 2022. The virtual meetings brought together more than 260 delegates representing Customs administrations, the Private Sector Consultative Group (PSCG), other international organizations and academia.
In his opening remarks, Mr. Pranab Kumar Das, WCO Director of Compliance and Facilitation, highlighted that the SWG had reached an important juncture as the new three-year SAFE review cycle 2021-2024 was about to enter into discussions. It was pointed out that 17 years after it was first published, the SAFE Framework of Standards (FoS) had garnered substantial interest from WCO Members. During the meetings, Guyana became the 172nd WCO Member to express its interest in implementing the SAFE FoS.
With a view to continued enhancement of the AEO criteria and provisions to strengthen the SAFE FoS, WCO Members made several new proposals to revise the Framework. The SWG also received feedback from the private sector on the urgent need to enhance the harmonization of SAFE and AEO implementation. In this context, the SWG heard a presentation by the WCO Anti-Corruption and Integrity Promotion (A-CIP) Programme on maintaining the integrity and transparency of AEO implementation.
On this occasion, the SWG reviewed and adopted the new Work Plan for 2022-2024, which reflected the critical activities the SWG will carry out over the next two years until 2024, in parallel with the SAFE review cycle. The SWG also received an update on the development of new features for the Online AEO Compendium (OAC) and the other extensive work underway in collaboration with other international organizations in the areas of security and facilitation.
Against the backdrop of the WCO’s theme for 2022, the panel discussion on “Scaling up Customs Digital Transformation by Embracing a Data Culture and Building a Data Ecosystem” attracted significant interest from Members and the private sector. The experienced speakers from Member Customs administrations, the private sector and the Secretariat enriched the discussions by sharing their best practices on using data for enhancing risk management and monitoring AEO programmes.
As a way forward, the SWG agreed that efforts will be reserved for a comprehensive review to assess and monitor SAFE implementation for greater harmonization of AEO programmes globally.
Source: World Customs Organisation, 25 April 2022
The WCO and the World Trade Organization (WTO) held a webinar to launch their joint publication on Customs use of advance technologies. The event attracted more than 700 attendees and provided insights into how advanced technologies can help Customs administrations facilitate the flow of goods across borders. The publication titled, “The role of advanced technologies in cross-border trade: A customs perspective” provides the current state of play and sheds light on the opportunities and challenges Customs face when deploying these technologies.
The publication outlines the key findings of WCO’s 2021 Annual Consolidated Survey and its results on Customs’ use of advanced technologies such as blockchain, the internet of things, data analytics and artificial intelligence to facilitate trade and enhance safety, security and fair revenue collection.
The joint publication highlights the benefits that can result from the adoption of these advanced technologies, such as enhanced transparency of procedures, sharing of information amongst all relevant stakeholders in real time, better risk management, and improved data quality, leading to greater efficiency in Customs processes and procedures.
In his remarks, WCO Deputy Secretary General Ricardo Treviño Chapa said, “Technologies will assist implementation of international trade facilitation rules and standards, such as the WCO Revised Kyoto Convention and the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. We are therefore delighted to be partnering with the WTO, to ensure that our work in assisting our Members’ digital transformation journeys is complementary, that we bring all relevant partners to the same table, and that we avoid duplication.”
In her opening remarks, WTO Deputy Director-General Anabel González noted, “Advanced technologies offer customs an opportunity to take a big leap forward on trade facilitation. Take blockchain. Its widespread application could help us make trade both more transparent and less paper intensive. That would reduce trade costs, which is good news for everyone, especially small businesses, which are disproportionately affected by red tape at the border.”
The webinar presented the main findings from the WCO/WTO paper and featured presentations by Brazil, Nigeria, Singapore and the Inter-American Development Bank. For a greater uptake of these technologies, the speakers underlined the importance of continuous sensitization of Customs and other stakeholders, the need for interoperability and implementation of international standards, the relevance of engaging in dialogues at international level, as well as having a strategy and space for innovation and testing at national level.
The full publication can be accessed here.
WCO News features an article by the Secretariat on the WCO Data Model – the common language for border management-related processes which enable information to flow seamlessly across different IT systems. The article focuses on the latest data requirements and processes which have been included in the Model through collaboration with stakeholders in the maritime, food safety, waste management and postal sectors. In addition, it offers some practical guidance to Customs administrations which are considering adopting the Model and calls on economic operators to use it in their commercial processes also, as it covers some of the data elements found in commercial documents such as the invoice, packing list and bill of lading.
This is followed by an article by the Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) introducing various projects dealing with the collection, analysis and sharing of data. The author also emphasizes that a culture of innovation has emerged within BURS, and that the working environment supports creative thinking and the generation of new or improved products, services and processes.
The third article presents the results of, and lessons learned from, the first International Survey on Customs Administration (ISOCA), which was co-managed by the WCO and the IMF with the aim of collecting quantitative and qualitative data on Customs administrations and enabling comparisons to be made between countries that share common features. A higher number of participants is required for the Survey to provide a global view of the roles played by Customs administrations, and of their practices. I hope more administrations will participate in future editions of the Survey, which will be simplified to strike a better balance between the need for accurate data and the burden of data collection.
In the next article, Dominican Republic Customs introduces the tools it has developed to measure the time required to release goods and support the Government’s Release in 24 Hours (D24H) Programme, whose objective is to turn the Dominican Republic into the logistics epicenter “par excellence” of the Caribbean region.
A further article takes us to Niger, where the Customs Administration recently financed a study into the use of satellite imagery to analyze cross-border trade flows. The article presents the information collected and explains how it will be used to reorganize operational services and provide efficient links within the territory.
The final article in this Dossier sheds light on the need for harmonization in the digitization of trade documents. This article by the ICC introduces the ICC’s Digital Standards Initiative (DSI), a collaborative cross-industry effort to advance the digitization of trade globally through the adoption of a set of standards.
Many other articles published in this edition of the WCO News directly or indirectly touch on data and on the role that information technology plays in making us more efficient. And this is true of all the editions of our magazine. You have heard or read it many times: in today’s world, it’s all about data. Data is strategic, and we all stand to gain by sharing experience and expertise on how best to manage it in a holistic way.
Source: WCOOMD, March 2022
At the invitation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, the World Customs Organization (WCO) gave a presentation on international standards for the drafting of tools and instruments on rules of origin at a virtual workshop on the drafting of the AfCFTA Rules of Origin Handbook held on Monday 21 February 2022.
In her welcoming address, the Chairperson of the Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin expressed her profound gratitude and thanks to the AfCFTA’s partner organizations, such as the WCO and UNCTAD, as well as to the Regional Economic Communities (COMESA, EAC, ECOWAS and the SADC) which had kindly accepted the invitation to share their experience of drafting rules of origin handbooks.
She reminded those taking part that Article 8.3 of the Agreement establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area laid down that any additional instruments, within the scope of that Agreement, deemed necessary, are to be concluded in furtherance of the objectives of the AfCFTA and will, upon adoption, form an integral part of the Agreement. In accordance with Article 13 of the Protocol on Trade in Goods, discussions among the negotiating bodies had led to the adoption of Annex 2 on Rules of Origin and of close to 88% of the tariff lines constituting Annex IV. She also emphasized that both of those legal documents on rules of origin had to be made operational through the use of the Rules of Origin Handbook.
With a view to the implementation of Annex 2 on Rules of Origin of the AfCFTA Protocol on Trade in Goods, she went on to stress that the 8th Meeting of the Council of Ministers, held on 28 January 2022, had decided that the work on drafting the AfCFTA’s Rules of Origin Handbook had to be given priority.
Accordingly, under Item 3 on the Agenda, the WCO gave a talk on the drafting of rules of origin handbooks, presenting some practical cases that explained the international standards applied in drawing up its tools. There was then a question-and-answer session in which the delegates from Customs administrations, trade and industry were able to have a fuller exchange on the subject of good practices on which the AfCFTA could draw in finalizing the drafting of the Rules of Origin Handbook.
The workshop was attended by more than 150 delegates, for whom it was an opportunity to learn more about good practices in relation to the drafting of operational handbooks on rules of origin, with a view to making proposals for improvements to the AfCFTA handbook, on the basis, too, of the experiences of the WCO, UNCTAD and the African RECs.
The workshop came before the 5th Meeting of the Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin to be held from 22 to 25 February 2022, at which the handbook in question would have to be drawn up in order to facilitate the implementation of AfCFTA rules of origin and thereby boost intra-African trade.
Source: WCOOMD, 24 February 2022
The World Customs Organization (WCO) has joined hands, once again, with partner Annex D+ organizations (GATF, ITC, OECD, UNECE, UNESCAP, WBG and WTO) in supporting the Global Forum 2022 for National Trade Facilitation Committees (NTFCs). The Forum is being held from 1 to 4 February 2022 in a virtual mode and led by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). It has brought together more than 500 participants, around half of which are members of their NTFCs.
In the high-level opening session, the speakers agreed on the need to ensure well-functioning, holistic and dynamic NTFCs, with their critical role in facilitating trade especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, through collaborative arrangements amongst all relevant public and private sector stakeholders. Embracing digital tools, the e-commerce growth and the importance of MSMEs and women traders were also highlighted by the speakers.
In his video address, Dr. Kunio Mikuriya, the Secretary General of the WCO emphasized the importance of trade facilitation during the COVID-19 pandemic recovery phase. Through simplifying and standardizing border procedures and creating transparent and predictable conditions for trade, Customs administrations facilitate legitimate business that, in turn, increases economic growth and job opportunities.
Secretary General Mikuriya mentioned a survey carried out in 2021, where the WCO took stock of the situation in the area of NTFCs, including the challenges and opportunities observed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many NTFCs have put their work on hold, due to the inability to meet in person. However, in some instances NTFCs played an important role in addressing facilitation priorities during the pandemic, and have benefited from the sense of urgency generated by the crisis.
Dr. Mikuriya emphasized the need to strengthen the partnership among all relevant government authorities for improving border agency cooperation, which is essential in emergency situations. He reiterated the need to foster the dialogue and collaboration with the business community and underscored the private sector contribution to digitization, to conducting the Time Release Studies and in advancing Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) programmes, while taking into consideration the specific challenges of MSMEs.
The importance of increased diversity and inclusion in trade facilitation reforms, including improving the conditions for women traders was also highlighted. The WCO supports this agenda through its Network for Gender Equality and Diversity, amongst others.
The WCO reiterated its commitment to the TFA agenda in developing and least developed country Members through the WCO Mercator Programme.
The NTFC Forum was made possible with the support of the United Kingdom’s Her Majesty Customs & Revenue (HMRC) through the HMRC-WCO-UNCTAD Trade Facilitation Capacity Building Programme, which brings together the WCO and UNCTAD in a partnership for TFA implementation.
The whole address of the Secretary General can be found here.
On 27 January 2022, representatives of the WCO, the AfCFTA Secretariat and the European Commission held a virtual meeting to review the state of play in the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The meeting focused on the trade liberalization mechanism envisaged by the AfCFTA Agreement, the management of tariff offers and a possibility of setting up a continental digital platform to handle information on applicable tariff rates covering all African countries.
In opening the meeting, Mrs. Demitta Chinwude Gyang, Head of Customs at the AfCFTA Secretariat, expressed her appreciation for the support provided by the WCO and the EU on the implementation of the Harmonized System (HS) under the EU-WCO Programme for HS in Africa (HS-Africa Programme), funded by the EU. She emphasised that the trade under the AfCFTA had already started from January 2021, and 44 tariff offers had been submitted by AfCFTA signatories already. She explained that the AfCFTA Secretariat intended to create a web-based ‘tariff book’ whereby all the necessary information on tariff offers and applicable tariff rates would be made available in a user-friendly and easily accessible manner.
The representatives of the WCO and the EU welcomed the AfCFTA initiative to set up a digital tariff platform at the continental level, recalling that electronic tariffs had been successfully implemented in some African countries in the recent past, with the support of the HS-Africa Programme. They stressed that such digital tools contributed significantly to trade facilitation efforts of Customs administrations and Regional Economic Communities by providing data that were vital for trade operators. The EU and the WCO reiterated their firm commitment to offering continued support to the AfCFTA in that regard, under the HS-Africa Programme.
In conclusion, the meeting participants agreed that the initiative should start by developing terms of reference for the implementation of the AfCFTA digital ‘tariff book’ and launching a tendering process to select a service provider that would carry out the required technical work. It was felt that this project would contribute to scaling up digital transformation of Customs, announced as the theme of the year 2022, and create a foundation for the next steps in the establishment of the Customs union on the African continent.
For more details, please, contact capacity.building@wcoomd.org.
Unlike the previous versions where the WCO DM was made available on the WCO Members’ website in a downloadable format, version 3.11.0 of the WCO DM is being released on a new publication platform: the WCO DM app. This app interactively displays WCO DM components and aims to enhance the user experience of working with the WCO DM. In so doing, it helps users navigate through different WCO DM data objects, such as classes, data elements and information models, more easily.
The publication of version 3.11.0 in December 2021 marks the culmination of the maintenance process undertaken by the DMPT in its meetings held from September 2020 to April 2021.
In addition to incorporating changes requested by Members through the regular maintenance procedure, version 3.11.0 introduces two new Message Implementation Guides (MIGs) – for implementing the IMO Compendium and WCO-UPU Joint Message Standards.
The MIGs offer practical guidance and additional technical information useful for implementation of the DM, in addition to the semantic definitions available in the Base Information Packages (BIPs) and/or Derived Information Packages (DIPs).
The IMO MIG includes technical information for implementing ship reporting formalities outlined in the Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (FAL Convention). This MIG is the result of the joint efforts of the WCO and the IMO in updating the IMO Compendium on Facilitation and Electronic Business.
The UPU MIG contains technical information relating to primary electronic message formats, namely CUSITM, a message for a postal operator to transmit mail item information to its local Customs authority, and CUSRES, a message to respond to a CUSITM message.
In accordance with the Council Decision of December 2020, the WCO DM package published in the DM app is available free of charge to all interested parties, including Members, partner international organizations and private-sector stakeholders. All those interested in accessing the WCO DM will be able to take advantage of the app after accepting the WCO DM use terms and conditions. The app is accessible at http://datamodel.wcoomd.org.
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