Articles under section " Dossier: Making a difference "

Every year, the WCO Secretariat calls on the Organization’s Members to focus their activities on a specific area. This is usually a topic of particular concern to societies around the world, or may relate to a specific approach identified as being instrumental in advancing Customs’ mission. In 2...

This year, we are challenging ourselves to communicate more and better, to tell stories of the positive work Customs is doing and to recall the fundamental principles that drive our efforts. When we tell these stories, we must be open and candid. The goals we are pursuing are large and complex, and ...

In July 2024, the Portuguese Government adopted 15 measures to combat digital bureaucracy and simplify the interactions between citizens and public administrations. The measures are not centred on public administration efficiency but rather on the impact they will have on citizens and companies. On...

However, specific formalities apply to consignments which contain goods whose intrinsic value at import does not exceed 1,000 euro and which are not subject to a special formality provided for in EU legislation which the Customs authorities are required to apply (restrictions, prohibitions, excise,...

This article introduces the measures taken in Uzbekistan to combat tobacco smuggling that led to a significant reduction in the volume of Customs seizures in 2024 together with an increase in the volume of importations. According to researchers at the Tashkent State University of Economics, 576 m...

Enhancing the monitoring of transit operations Uzbekistan is a landlocked country bordered by Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. Located along the ancient Silk Road, it has been the centre of commerce and trade in Central Asia for many centuries and is still...

Located in the centre of South America, Bolivia is characterized by a varied topography ranging from low-lying plains to high mountain ranges. Owing to its strategic location, Bolivia has the potential to become a connecting hub between the economic regions of the Andean Community (abbreviated as CA...

Investment in road, Customs and logistics infrastructure Over the past few years, the Government of Bolivia – under the administration of President Luis Alberto Arce Catacora and the President of the Bolivian National Customs Service, Karina Liliana Serrudo Miranda – has made investment in Bol...

Modernizing Customs The Bolivian Customs Administration rolled out a series of advanced technologies to boost efficiency and strengthen border security. Such technologies include scanners for non-intrusive inspection of vehicles and an ANPR camera system that captures images and videos of the regi...

The Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) has in recent months revised its Strategic Plan and its performance measurement system to enhance its accountability to the Government and society alike, as well as increase the transparency of its operations. While drafting its KPIs, it sought the guidance of the...

KPIs are monitored through Monthly Monitoring Reports, using Excel sheets. A colour system has been established to quickly distinguish areas where performance targets have been met: Cells in green are for revenue-related KPIs reaching 100% of the expected output and non-revenue KPIs reaching expect...

For the past decade or so, one of Cameroon Customs’ main priorities has been the enormous task of fighting illicit trade. Although it has been a regular participant in various crackdowns organized by the WCO in recent years, since late 2016 it has also been working on its own enforcement operation...

Working method and initial outcomes Customs responded to these calls by establishing a team of around 100 Customs officers under the auspices of a central command unit. The planned approach involved stepping up targeted checks and systematically recording all of the goods smuggled onto the market...

In an article published in WCO News in June 2015, Indonesian Customs shared its experience of building systems for the transmission and processing of advance passenger information (API) and passenger name record (PNR) data. In the article, the Administration explained in detail the difficulties and...

nalysis of the data enables Customs to identify anomalies such as travel itineraries involving sensitive or illogical routes, passengers travelling with a suspicious amount of luggage for the length of their stay, unusual forms of payment, suspect travel agencies, etc., or a combination of these dif...

Until recently, therefore, officers of the air passenger analysis unit needed to open two separate applications in order to be able to visualize the data, and carrying out the analysis was very time-consuming and energy-intensive. They reported that the excessive amount of data displayed on the scre...

Trade-based money laundering (TBML) schemes are deeply embedded in global trade networks. Successfully tackling this threat requires Customs to explore new techniques and methodologies, enhance interagency and international cooperation, invest in public-private partnerships, and leverage advanced t...

Typologies highlighted by the FATF include but are not limited to: Over-invoicing – where the goods are described correctly on the Customs documentation, but their value is overstated. Under-invoicing – where the goods are described correctly on the Customs documentation, but their value is und...

Nigeria is the fourth largest economy in Africa. Given its market size and strategic location on the African continent, international trade plays a key role in its economy, and the country is home to a network of bustling ports, airports and border crossings. In recent years, the Nigerian Government...

  The AEO programme will gradually replace the Fast Track Scheme (FTS) introduced in 2003, which was compliance-focused and open only to manufacturers, with the key benefit of allowing goods arriving in Nigeria to be immediately transferred to a trader’s premises under NCS escort. Now, any op...

Setting up the foundation: AEO Steering Committee and Technical Working Group One of the milestones of the project was the inauguration ceremony held on 2 August 2023 for the newly established AEO Steering Committee and AEO Technical Working Group. The event was marked by a sense of optimism and ...

In an article published in October 2022 in WCO News, the Bahamas Customs and Excise Department (BCED) explained how it had strengthened its capacity to fight revenue leakages and losses by leveraging data analytics. Since the publication of that article, significant progress has been made and new to...

Building skills Cognizant that technological advancements need to be accompanied by trained and specialized Customs officials who can navigate the intricacies of any new technology, the Department invested heavily in the training of Customs officers and other agency personnel so as to enable them to...

Enhancing risk management The BCED recognized the need to tap into and improve its internal resources related to risk management, thus developing a new risk management module called the Architecture Risk Analysis (ARA) system. Using network analytics, predictive analytics, anomaly detection and t...

Bahrain Customs Affairs has developed a compliance programme with the ultimate objective of boosting international trade operations and increasing export opportunities, especially for companies operating in the key economic sectors identified in Bahrain’s Government Plan and in other policy docume...

Certification as an AEO is obtained through a specific process initiated once an application to join the AEO programme is received. Other levels of compliance are measured through post-clearance audits (PCA), a process consisting of a structured examination, after Customs has released the cargo, of ...