From 2 to 5 May 2023, the Secretariat of the World Customs Organization (WCO), in cooperation with Comoros Customs, held a national workshop on post-clearance audit (PCA) in Moroni (Comoros). The workshop was funded by the China Customs Cooperation Fund (CCF China).

Twenty Customs managers working in the various central and regional control units took part in the workshop, which was delivered in French by two WCO-accredited operational and technical advisers on post-clearance audit.

In his opening address, the Director General of Customs, Mr. Moustoifa Hassani Mohamed, expressed his sincere gratitude to the WCO Secretariat and CCF China for the support they had provided to Comoros Customs, and said that his Administration was set on a path of modernization, in order to ensure efficient post-clearance audit. This workshop was therefore important for building the Customs Administration’s PCA capacity.

During the workshop, the participants were introduced to the various stages of the post-clearance audit cycle, as defined by the tools and instruments of the WCO and by Article 7.5 of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).

The workshop included a theoretical technical component dealing with the various stages of the post-clearance audit cycle, for example control planning, targeting, data analysis techniques, pre-audit research and audit execution, and a practical technical component, during which the participants engaged in PCA-related role play, using an auditing approach based on the analysis of accounting and commercial documents, in order to bring to light any irregularities committed by the auditees.

During an exchange of views, the participants talked about the challenges of setting up a PCA mechanism, in particular the specific national economic and social circumstances, local trade practices and the human and technical capacities of Customs. On this basis, the WCO experts were able to prepare an overview of the specific needs to improve PCA implementation in the Comoros.

At the closing session, the Director General of Customs, Mr. Moustoifa Hassani Mohamed, highlighted the need to combine and diversify the Customs control methods to ensure fair revenue collection, and announced that other advanced training sessions would be held, in order to improve the PCA skills of Customs officials.

Mr. Yahaya Ahmed Houmadi, Secretary General of the Ministry of Finance, Budget and Banking Sector, for his part, stressed that PCA was an effective mechanism that could ensure a balance between facilitating trade and the requirements of Customs regulations. He added that the workshop had achieved its objectives, and its success should contribute significantly to the development of a robust PCA system within Comoros Customs.