WCO technical assistance with AEO development and the Revised Kyoto Convention in Nicaragua

17 to 19 August 2009

Nicaraguan Customs, which is in the process of developing its Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Programme, requested WCO assistance with that Programme and the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC). The mission was rolled out in Nicaragua from 17 to 19 August 2009 and involved liaising with a Nicaraguan Customs working group to design the Programme during meetings within the Administration. In the course of its mission, the WCO reviewed the draft documentation designed by the working group as well as outlining the next steps in the implementation process.

Nicaraguan Customs also used this mission as an initial opportunity to provide a select group of private sector representatives with an insight into the programme. The meeting with the private sector highlighted the commercial and competitive opportunities that Programmes such as this would bring to Nicaragua. This was best summed by one of the participants, who said that his clients representing major markets had asked his company to join an AEO Programme or else risk losing their business.