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The Johannesburg Convention: a new tool to facilitate
Mutual Administrative Assistance among WCO Members
In view of the persistent concern of all governments with the issue of terrorism and transnational crime, all Customs administrations have to closely co-operate to overcome the challenges that they face.
To facilitate this cooperation, the WCO Council adopted the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters as it was convinced that the Johannesburg Convention will provide Customs administrations with a modern, appropriate and complete instrument for information exchange at the international level, resulting in more effective controls by Customs.
Closer and more effective co-operation between Customs Administrations is the prinicipal aim of this Convention as it is based on the principle of reciprocity aand becomes binding once signed. The Convention is supported by the Commentary that explains the provisions of the Convention.
When in force, the Convention will provide a legal basis for the exchange of information and provision of administrative assistance, on request, between contracting parties for the proper application of Customs law. It contains a wide variety of provisions, including cross-border cooperation and the pooling of information in a global data base to assist contracting parties in the areas of transnational crime, revenue fraud and border security.
The new Convention presents some benefits and modern co-operation methods that involve a variety of enforcement techniques. For instance, for the security of the international trade supply chain, it provides for the exchange of information in advance of the shipment of goods.
The new Convention contains also a provision allowing Customs administrations to exchange, by mutual arrangement, any information covered by the Convention on an automatic basis.
The Convention is open for signature at the WCO Headquarters in Brussels until 28 June 2004. Any Member of the WCO or the United Nations or its specialized agencies has the choice of signing the Convention without reservation of ratification or signing it subject to ratification and depositing the instrument of ratification at a later date.
After 28 June 2004, any such Member may deposit its instrument of ratification with the Secretary General to indicate its accession.
