The second phase of the SECO-WCO Global Trade Facilitation Programme (GTFP) was successfully launched in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on 27 November, followed by the first National Steering Committee Meeting.  The launching ceremony featured the signing of the Country Work Plan between the Customs Committee of Uzbekistan, the Swiss Confederation, and the WCO and the presentation of the Second Phase of the SECO-WCO Global Trade Facilitation Programme (GTFP-II).

The positive impact of the first phase of GTFP in the Republic of Uzbekistan and the successful initiation mission conducted this summer have rekindled the Customs Committee's commitment to the Programme's second phase. The second phase will continue to strengthen the organizational and technical capacities of the Customs Committee (CC) to lead, plan, and implement sustainable and transparent customs reforms, with better involvement of the private sector and relevant stakeholders, and apply international standards and best practices, particularly those of the WCO and the WTO related to trade facilitation.

The GTFP-II in the Republic of Uzbekistan will follow the same implementation approach as the first phase, based on the WCO capacity-building methodology and tools, especially the WCO Mercator Programme, to respond to the main challenges in trade facilitation. The project will focus on two main components. The first is organizational development, which aims to strengthen Custom's organizational capacity to manage reforms and ensure that the CC can fulfil its mission and improve national and regional competitiveness. The second is Trade Facilitation, which aims to support the implementation of efficient Customs procedures to facilitate the cross-border movement of goods and reduce trade-related costs.  

For more information on the SECO-WCO Global Trade Facilitation Programme (GTFP), please contact Capacity.Building@wcoomd.org.