WCO, UNODC and Australia Border Force joined up to implement the Container Control Programme (CCP) in the Oceania region.

On 10/11 June, at the invitation of the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service, the CCP Coordinators of WCO and UNODC and the project coordinator from the Australia Border Force visited Suva Fiji to discuss options to establish a specialized Port Control Unit in this country.

Fiji is a central hub for sea and air cargo in the Oceania region and has numerous trade links to Australia and New Zealand. The creation of a dedicated risk profiling team to identify potential illicit and non-compliant shipments will mark another step of Fiji Revenue and Customs to address threats in the region.

The Chief Executive Officer of Fiji Revenue and Customs underlined the commitment of his administration in targeting illicit trade and the readiness to cooperate with the global Customs community. CCP offers a channel for such international cooperation via its ContainerComm system, a specialized communication platform based on the WCO CENcomm application. It is also envisaged to install the WCO Container Targeting System in Fiji.

The Australian Border Force will partner with the UNODC, the WCO and Fiji to implement the Container Control Programme and the Cargo Targeting System, building on the strong partnerships it has with border agencies in the Oceania Region.