66th Session of the WCO Policy Commission
Abuja, 5-7 December 2011
Report
The Policy Commission held its 66th Session in Abuja, Nigeria, from 5 to 7 December 2011 at the invitation of the Nigeria Customs Service and under the chairmanship of Ms. Josephine Feehily, Ireland.
The opening ceremony was held in the presence of the Nigerian Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, as representative of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Minister welcomed delegates to Nigeria and spoke on the role of Customs worldwide, as well as the many challenges facing Customs administrations round the globe.
The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Mr. Dikko Inde Abdullahi, outlined the experience of the Nigeria Customs Service in a number of areas of activity and also explained the work being carried out by Nigeria in its role as Vice-Chair for the West and Central Africa region.
During the session, the Policy Commission approved and issued a Resolution which provided a strong message on the commitment of the Organization in respect of air cargo security, including the coverage of air cargo security in the SAFE Framework of Standards and the coordination necessary between relevant authorities and bodies at national and international level.
In-depth discussions were held on two strategic topics, namely, “Emerging and evolving risks” and “Globally Networked Customs”, and valuable orientation and guidance was obtained to help frame and progress work on these questions over the coming months.
The Policy Commission also expressed its support and encouragement in respect of the work being carried out by the Secretariat on a number of key initiatives, including the Revenue Package, security and facilitation, capacity building, Programme Global Shield, and the choice of “connectivity” as the theme for International Customs Day 2012.