At the invitation of Mr. Gonzalo Pereira, Director General of Chile Customs, and the Mexican Revenue Service, WCO Deputy Secretary General Sergio Mujica attended the XXXVIth Meeting of the Multilateral Agreement on Mutual Assistance for Directors General of Customs of Latin America, Spain and Portugal (COMALEP), held in Puerto Natales, Chile, from 15 to 17 April 2015.

The opening ceremony was chaired by Mr. Pereira and included opening remarks from Teresa Medina Mora, Secretary of COMALEP and Head of International Affairs of the Mexico Revenue Service, as well as from the WCO Deputy Secretary General. The Governor of the Magallanes and Chilean Antarctic Region, Mr. Jorge Flies, and Senator Carolina Goic also addressed the meeting, highlighting the key role of Customs in trade facilitation and protection of society. They also referred to the significant contribution of Spain and Portugal in maintaining the links between Latin America and Europe.

The first day of the meeting was held jointly with the Conference of Directors General of Customs from the Americas and Caribbean Region and was also attended by representatives from the private sector organizations in the Region. The meeting focused on the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) and the indispensable role of Customs to support consistent and effective implementation of the Agreement.

On the second and third days of the COMALEP meeting, several panel sessions were held covering important topics, such as the practical experience of COMALEP Members in the implementation of various Articles of the TFA, e-commerce, Customs cooperation, information exchange, and best practices on risk management. Deputy Secretary General Mujica gave a presentation on the main actions carried out by the WCO in relation to COMALEP Members, including career development opportunities, capacity building activities and the usage of the WCO Customs Enforcement Network (CEN).

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Cover Photo:

From left to right: Mr. Gonzalo Pereira, Director General of Chile Customs, Mr. Sergio Mujica, WCO Deputy Secretary General, and Ms. Teresa Medina Mora, Secretary of COMALEP and Head of International Affairs of the Mexico Revenue Service.