WCO Asia/Pacific Heads of Customs Administrations Conference concludes successfully
At the invitation of Michael Outram, Australian Border Force (ABF) Commissioner and Comptroller-General of Customs and Vice-Chair of the WCO Asia/Pacific (A/P) region, WCO Secretary General Ian Saunders participated in the 25th WCO A/P Heads of Customs Administrations Conference, held in Sydney, Australia from 14 to 18 April 2024.
The A/P Vice-Chair warmly welcomed the participants to the Conference and welcomed Palau as the region’s newest WCO Member. While highlighting the key priorities for Customs within the A/P region, Mr. Outram noted the relevance of this year’s theme “Customs Engaging Traditional and New Partners with Purpose”, and underlined the importance of international supply chain resilience this context.
In his opening remarks and report, Secretary General Saunders outlined some of the WCO’s recent key activities, including updates on the progress made in the implementation of the Organization’s Strategic Plan 2022/2025. He went on to present advancements in the development of the WCO's modernization plan, and carefully listened to Members’ views in this regard. During his visit, the Secretary General took part in a number of bilateral meetings with Members from the region.
The Heads of Customs Administrations took also note of the implementation status of the Regional Strategic Plan, as well as of the activity reports of the Vice-Chair and of the A/P regional entities such as the WCO Regional Office for Capacity Building (ROCB), the WCO Regional Intelligence Liaison Office (RILO) and the Regional Private Sector Consultative Group, and endorsed the new regional strategic plan for 2024-2026. Gratifying to note was the degree to which the Asia-Pacific region seeks to align its undertakings with the WCO Strategic Plan.
The Conference supported the draft WCO Resolution on Strengthening Customs-Industry Resilience and endorsed the WCO A/P Communiqué for Gender Equality and Diversity. Additionally, the Conference approved the establishment of a WCO Regional Training Centre in Cambodia and the attachment of a third Customs Training Centre to the already existing Regional Training Centre in India.
The Conference concluded successfully, advancing many regional initiatives and providing a valuable opportunity for interaction between Members and the Secretary General in advance of this year’s Council meeting.
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