At the invitation of Secretary General Patrick Gomes of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States, Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya addressed a meeting of ACP Ministers of Trade and Ambassadors in Brussels on 24 June.
Mr. Mikuriya explained the role and coverage of the WCO, its tools and instruments, as well as the support that the Organization could give to ACP Member States, particularly in the area of trade facilitation. He highlighted the contribution that Customs could make to enhance the economic competitiveness of countries at national level and at regional level through the support for regional integration.
In that connection, Secretary General Mikuriya urged Trade Ministers to engage with Customs, particularly in the National Committees on Trade Facilitation set up under the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), in order to benefit from the assistance and experience that Customs had to offer.
In response to questions from participants, he also provided information on Customs-Business partnership, security initiatives, rules of origin and the impact of transfer pricing.
The Ministers and Ambassadors from the 79 ACP Member countries welcomed the comprehensive presentation, which they considered to be very relevant.