Following a request of the Burundi Revenue Authority (OBR) the World Customs Organization (WCO) organized a diagnostic mission on Single Window in Bujumbura and two Border Crossing Posts (BCP) in Burundi from 20 to 24 November 2017.

The diagnostic mission was performed with the financial support of the Finnish funded WCO-ESA Project “To progress the TF agenda, within the framework of the WCO Mercator Programme 2016 – 2019”.

The mission took into account previous efforts in the field of Single Window in Burundi. The Single Window initiative had started in 2015. The scope of this diagnostic mission was to determine how the WCO could assist Burundi in reactivating the initiative and determining the support needed for future steps. The WCO’s Single Window Functional Assessment tool was used throughout the diagnostic mission.

During the mission, the experts had extensive discussions with several other stakeholders covering topics related to immigration, agricultural products, health, standards, private sector involvement, as well as all relevant departments and units of the Burundi Revenue Authority. Based on the discussions a clearer picture of the overall situation can be drafted and future steps planned accordingly.

Two site visits took also place during the mission. The visit to the Kobero–Kabanga One Stop Border Post (OSBP) on the border between Burundi and Tanzania, inside the East African Community (EAC), highlighted actions that need to be implemented and revealed some potential obstacles that need to be dealt with prior to activating the Single Window environment. The team also visited the Gatumba–Kavimvira border post at the Burundi - Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) border. The two site visits at the BCPs were extremely useful in order to differentiate the EAC border functions and procedures at the OSBP in Kobero from the ones at Gatumba on the DRC border.

The next steps after the diagnostic mission have been agreed. A Single Window and Coordinated Border Management workshop will be organized in February 2018 in cooperation with the OBR. Representatives of all relevant stakeholders will be invited to attend this workshop to learn, discuss and further enhance cooperation and to ensure the successful future implementation of Coordinated Border Management and the National Single Window in Burundi. The workshop will also be financed by the Finnish funded WCO ESA-Project.

For further information please contact facilitation@wcoomd.org.