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28 May 2014
The WCO and the ESA Regional Office for Capacity Building (ROCB ESA), in cooperation with the Kenyan Revenue Authority, organized the first WCO ESA Regional Workshop on Resource Mobilization in Mombasa, Kenya from 19 to 23 May 2014.
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28 May 2014
The President of the Federation of National Associations of Ship Brokers and Agents (FONASBA), Ms. Marygrace Collins, visited the WCO to sign a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya on 27 May 2014.
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27 May 2014
The WCO and Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recently held a joint regional workshop in Budapest, Hungary on Customs valuation and transfer pricing.
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27 May 2014
A delegation from the Thai Excise Department led by Mr. Somchai Poolsavasdi, Director-General of the Royal Thai Excise Department, who was accompanied by Ms. Supharumpai Hantweepanich, Minister, Office of Customs Counsellor at the Royal Thai Embassy in Brussels, visited the WCO on 26 May 2014. The main purpose of this visit was to exchange views on best practices for combating smuggling of tobacco products.
The Thai delegation was welcomed by WCO Deputy Secretary General Sergio Mujica who, after providing background on the development of the WCO, gave a wide-ranging presentation on the WCO’s Strategic Plan and mission, in which trade facilitation, protection of society and revenue collection play a key role in ensuring Customs efficiency and effectiveness in the promotion of economic prosperity and social development.
The meeting continued with a series of technical presentations. They covered the WCO’s approach to countering illicit trade, with specific focus on the Compliance and Enforcement Package and related enforcement efforts in five high-risk areas, namely revenue, security, drugs, health and safety/intellectual property rights (IPR), and environment. The global and regional situations regarding the illicit trade in tobacco products were then presented and some best practices shared, taking Operation GRYPHON and the RILO Asia/Pacific’s Project CROCODILE as examples. The visit ended with a presentation on the WCO’s enforcement tools, including CEN, nCEN and CENcomm, and the support they offer Customs administrations in their enforcement duties.
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26 May 2014
The WCO, reinforcing its efforts to provide high-quality training and technical assistance on the Harmonized System, conducted an accreditation workshop for Arabic-speaking Expert trainers in the Harmonized System from the MENA region (Middle East and North African region).
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26 May 2014
At the invitation of the Swedish Minister for Trade, Ms. Ewa Björling, WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya visited Stockholm, Sweden on 22 and 23 May 2014.
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23 May 2014
Customs officials intercepted 21.3 million counterfeit and pirated items at 21 ports across Central America, South America and the Caribbean during a one-week enforcement operation to combat counterfeiting and piracy called TIGRE 3.
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22 May 2014
Nearly 200 enforcement agencies across 111 countries have taken part in Operation Pangea VII targeting criminal networks behind the sale of fake medicines via illicit online pharmacies, resulting in 239 arrests worldwide and the seizure of nearly USD 30 million worth of potentially dangerous medicines.
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21 May 2014
At the invitation of Ms. Lilianne Ploumen, Netherlands Minister for Trade and Development Cooperation, Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya had a bilateral meeting in Brussels, on 19 May 2014.
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21 May 2014
The WCO has long recognised the importance and the many benefits of advance ruling programmes. Higher levels of certainty, predictability and transparency for economic operators and the Customs alike are some of the most obvious gains to be had when a full-fledged programme of advance rulings is up and running in a country.
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19 May 2014
The World Customs Organization (WCO) welcomes the APEC Qingdao Statement adopted at the APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade (MRT) meeting held on 17 and18 May 2014 in Qingdao, China.
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16 May 2014
The WCO Regional Workshop on Leadership in Single Window and WCO Data Model was held from 5 to 9 May 2014 in Brisbane, Australia, under the sponsorship of the Customs Cooperation Fund, Japan (CCF/Japan), and in collaboration with the Australia Customs and Border Protection Services (ACBPS).
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16 May 2014
At the invitation of the Vice-Chair of the East and Southern Africa (ESA) Region, Mrs. Agnes Katsonga Phiri, Commissioner of Customs and Excise, Malawi, the Secretary General, Mr. Kunio Mikuriya attended the 19th Meeting of the Heads of Customs Governing Council ESA Region, on 15 and 16 May 2014. The meeting was hosted by the South African Revenue Service (SARS) in Johannesburg.
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14 May 2014
The newly appointed Vice-Minister of Foreign Trade of Costa Rica, Mr. Jhon Fonseca, met with WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya at WCO Headquarters, on 13 May 2014, on the occasion of his first foreign mission as Vice-Minister.
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13 May 2014
The Technical Committee on Customs Valuation (TCCV) held its 38th Session in Brussels from 5 to 9 May 2014. The TCCV is the body responsible for technical interpretation of the WTO Agreement on Customs valuation and in particular examines technical questions submitted by WTO/WCO Members. In some cases, instruments are issued based on questions raised which provide helpful guidance to Customs administrations and importers, leading to a more consistent interpretation of the Agreement.
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13 May 2014
A new Brussels-based African Customs Attachés Group visits the WCO
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12 May 2014
At the invitation of Mr. Marcio Verdi, Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations (CIAT), the WCO Deputy Secretary General Sergio Mujica attended CIAT’s 48th General Assembly from 5 to7 May 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The central theme of the meeting was: "The Use of Information and Communication Technologies in the Tax Administration”.
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12 May 2014
With sponsorship of the German Customs Cooperation Fund (CCF/Germany), a WCO National Seminar on the Harmonized System (HS) and the Classification Management was held in the headquarters of the Montenegro Customs in Podgorica, from 6 to 9 May 2014.
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08 May 2014
Over 400 delegates from 80 countries attended the 2014 IT Conference and Exhibition from 5 to 7 May 2014 organized in Brisbane Australia with the theme of “Information Technology as a Catalyst for Economic Competiveness - Innovation Powering Facilitation of International Trade & Tourism”. With 70 speakers this year representing enforcement authorities and businesses as well as the international organizations and academia, this three days event is the WCO’s premium platform which brings together governments and vendors in pursuit of innovative solutions for enhanced border management.
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07 May 2014
The World Customs Organization (WCO) has launched on its website the WCO Implementation Guidance for the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade Facilitation (ATF) to support WCO Members in their efforts to implement the ATF.
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05 May 2014
The 63rd WCO Fellowship Programme, at the same time the 4th in Spanish, was launched in Brussels on Monday 28 April 2014.
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05 May 2014
The 2014 WCO IT Conference & Exhibition opened on Monday 5 May 2014 in Brisbane under the theme of "Information Technology as a Catalyst for Economic Competiveness".
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02 May 2014
At the invitation of Mr. Michael Pezzullo, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS) and Vice-Chair of the WCO’s Asia/Pacific Region, Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya participated in the 15th WCO Asia/Pacific Regional Heads of Customs Administrations Conference held in Port Douglas, Australia, from 29 April to 2 May 2014.
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