WCO supported Ethiopian Customs Commission in building capacity on the Harmonized System

03 May 2023

From 25 to 28 April 2023, the Ethiopian Customs Commission (ECC) hosted a National Advanced Workshop on the Harmonized System in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Workshop was delivered by two experts from the WCO within the framework of the EU-WCO Programme for the Harmonized System in Africa (HS-Africa Programme), funded by the European Union, as part of the comprehensive package of assistance to support ECC’s work on building capacity for Harmonized System classification.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Azizew Chanie Abebe, Customs Operation Deputy Commissioner of the Ethiopian Customs Commission, expressed his appreciation for the technical assistance provided so far by the WCO and expressed the hope that this assistance would be strengthened in the future. He pointed out that this training was very important for the ECC, as it was expected to help Customs officers enhance their HS classification skills in different areas. It was further considered a good opportunity for them to gain an insight into the establishment of a Customs Laboratory in Ethiopia. He also emphasized the substantial role that the Workshop would play in their national engagement in the AfCFTA.

The Workshop was attended by 40 Customs Officers from across different Customs Offices of the country and from the headquarters of the ECC. The objective of the course was to deliver an advanced training on theoretical and practical aspects of the HS in the areas of mineral products, chemicals, medicaments versus food products, plastics, textiles and high tech products, as well as to ensure that the participants understand the principles of tariff classification of goods in the HS. Moreover, the Workshop aimed at assisting the ECC in determining technical requirements for the establishment of a Customs Laboratory.

As part of the assistance to ECC’s work, the WCO Secretariat purchased two microscopes and two balances, funded by the European Union within the framework of the EU-WCO Programme for the Harmonized System in Africa. The equipment were used for training purposes during the course to identify textile fibres and were handed over to the ECC after the Workshop.

Participants worked on a number of case studies where they classified specific products which presented complexities in classification, and, during the training on the textile Chapters, they had the chance to practice on the identification of various types of textile fibres using the above equipment.

At the end of the Workshop, Mr. Getu Legesse Almaw, Director of Tariff Classification and Rules of Origin of the Ethiopian Customs Commission, thanked the WCO and the European Union for the continued support to the ECC’s work on building capacity for Harmonized System classification as well as for the discussion and guidance on defining the technical requirements for the establishment of a Customs Laboratory.

For more details, please contact hs@wcoomd.org.