The WCO, in cooperation with the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, organized a Workshop on the Economic Competitiveness Package (ECP) for the Europe Region on 12 November 2013 at WCO Headquarters. During his opening address, Mr. Gaozhang Zhu, Director of Compliance and Facilitation, emphasized that the WCO would design further instruments or tools based on WCO Members’ needs and experiences of economic competitiveness. Mr. Shahin Baghirov from Azerbaijan Customs chaired the Workshop and reminded participants that the aim was to facilitate an exchange of strategic views to enhance economic competitiveness at the regional level.
During the Workshop, participants shared their experiences of the Single Window, Coordinated Border Management (CBM), Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), transit, and data exchange. Bearing in mind the diversity of the Europe Region, the Workshop participants exchanged views on regional priorities including but not limited to transparency and predictability, integrity, CBM and Customs modernization. They also discussed possible regional activities, such as sharing innovative practices and organizing sub-regional seminars or workshops focusing on a specific topic. The outcomes of this Workshop will form a sound basis for the development of a regional strategy for the Europe Region.