In the period 27-31 March 2017 the WCO delivered a National Workshop on the Convention on the Simplification and Harmonization of Customs Procedures (as amended), known as the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC).

The RKC is a WCO legal instrument regarded by the entire international Customs community as a blueprint for modern Customs in the 21st Century. The accession to the RKC is perceived as an important milestone in any country’s endeavours to further promote legitimate trade and effective Customs controls. As of today the number of Contracting Parties to the RKC is 108.

The RKC Awareness and Self-Assessment Tools workshop took place in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan with the active involvement of 33 participants from 13 state institutions, including the State Customs Service, the Ministry of Economy and Development, the Ministry of Justice and the Parliament of Turkmenistan. The workshop was conducted with the financial assistance of the Asian Development Bank that supported the event also in its capacity as the Secretariat of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC).

The core objectives of the workshop were to inform the participants of the benefits of acceding to the RKC, to improve their understanding of the RKC provisions as well as to build their skills to use the WCO self-assessment tools to assess the compliance of the national legislation with the provisions of the RKC.

After the official opening of the workshop by Mr. Guvanch Rejebov, Deputy Minister of Economy and Development, the participants were informed of the Turkmenistan Customs Service modernisation efforts.

The WCO experts provided detailed guidance on the principles of the RKC, the rights and obligations of the Contracting Parties to the Convention, as well as the provisions of the Body, the General Annex and the Specific Annexes thereof. With the support of the WCO experts, the workshop participants conducted a preliminary assessment of the compliance of some of the provisions of the RKC General Annex and two of the Specific Annexes to the Convention vis-à-vis Turkmenistan’s national legislation. The national regulations were found to be largely compliant with the RKC provisions selected for the analysis.

During the workshop closing session, the WCO experts provided recommendations on the actions to be undertaken towards Turkmenistan’s accession to the RKC and expressed their appreciation for the excellent organisational arrangements. At the same time, the Deputy Minister of Economy and Development also expressed his gratitude to the WCO for the support provided.