At the invitation of the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya delivered a keynote address at the IX Meeting of the IADB Network of International Trade Single Windows held in Montevideo, Uruguay, on 7 and 8 September 2017.
Secretary General Mikuriya highlighted the long association of the WCO and the IADB. He then briefly outlined the role of the WCO and that of Customs in facilitating trade, highlighting the provisions of the Revised Kyoto Convention in particular the opportunities and challenges associated with the implementation of the WTO TFA, cooperation and exchange of information between the various agencies at the border through a Single Window, the WCO guide for implementation of the WTO TFA and the establishment of the WCO Working Group on Trade Facilitation. He also touched upon the important role of trade with respect to National Committees on Trade Facilitation, Customs and trade cooperation, implementation of e-Commerce procedures, protection of revenue and the emphasis on supply chain security.
The IADB Network has expanded to cater for several thousand traders since its inception in 2011.
Perspectives on the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, regional progress in trade facilitation, extra-regional trade Single Window experience, regional integration, new technology trends influencing trade facilitation, global trends in Port Community Systems, automation, intelligent trade and the interoperability of systems were just some of the topics explored during the Meeting.