At the invitation of Ms. Velma Ricketts Walker, CEO and Commissioner of the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA), WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya visited Kingston, Jamaica, on 18 - 19 May.

The Secretary General held discussions with the Commissioner and her senior Customs management team on a wide range of Customs topics, including trade facilitation and Jamaica's participation in the Mercator Programme, e-commerce, Customs-tax cooperation, security, compliance management, Customs-to-Customs cooperation, integrity in Customs, and regional integration in the Caribbean area

Dr. Mikuriya also met with Mr. Audley Shaw, Jamaica's Minister of Finance and the Public Service,  together with Mr. Karl Samuda,  Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries; Mr. Lester Michael Henry, Minister of Transport and Mining; and senior representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and National Security.

The Ministers recognized the timeliness of the Secretary General's visit when new procedures and strategies were being developed to process and facilitate trade. The Ministers were keen for Jamaica and its Customs Agency to serve as a model of efficiency and effectiveness for the Caribbean region.

Secretary General Mikuriya welcomed the support and commitment of political leaders for the JCA and for the WCO, and confirmed the WCO's readiness to assist the Customs Administration in its drive for modernization and enhanced efficiency in its work.

In the course of his visit, the Secretary General visited Kingston Wharves and the adjacent Kingston Freeport Container Terminal, both of which are expanding and modernizing their facilities as they seek to enhance the role and status of Jamaica as a strategic hub for trade in the Caribbean.