The changes in the strategic landscape of Customs’ operating environment together with the long-term growth in trade and travel volumes have affected the way Customs administrations are managed and approach their tasks. These developments, together with the increasing uncertainty, have led many administrations to seek a more structured and systematic way to manage risks.

Risk management has been one of the key vehicles for Customs administrations to better meet the demands of the 21^st century operating environment, which is seeing Customs administrations endeavoring to address risk wherever they are found and increasingly as early in the supply chain as possible.

The development and implementation of an intelligence-enabled risk management framework along with embedding a risk management culture within a Customs organization has enabled more effective decision-making at all levels of the organization and in relation to all areas of risk. Today risk management is seen as one of the guiding principles associated with modern Customs administration.

There is an increasing need to define a common approach that enables Customs administrations across the globe to speak the same language about the methodology they utilize to both identify and treat potential risks. This methodology is outlined in the WCO Risk Management Compendium, which in itself is sufficiently flexible in its application to meet the unique operating environment and conditions of individual WCO Members.

The Compendium is comprised of two separate but interlinked volumes. Volume 1 sets out the organizational framework for risk management and outlines the risk management process. Volume 2 deals with risk assessment, profiling and targeting tools that inform selection criteria for identifying high-risk consignments, passengers and conveyances for Customs intervention.