On 15 September the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the World Customs Organization (WCO) engaged at the high-level opening session of the ICC Commission on Customs and Trade Facilitation (ICC Commission) to underline the importance of Customs-Business Partnership.
The ICC Commission opened this first fully virtual session aimed at strengthening cooperation between Customs and the WCO and promoting trade facilitation. In opening remarks, the WCO emphasised the strong cooperation that existed between the WCO and ICC - not only at leadership level, but also through the ICC’s participation in and valuable input to WCO meetings. The WCO gave some tangible examples of coordination between the two organisations, including the joint letter issued by the Secretaries General of the ICC and WCO on 20 March promoting greater ATA Carnet facilities, as well as the organisations’ respective publications supporting Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) during the COVID-19 pandemic to mark MSME Day on 27 June. Likewise, the ICC contributed to regular consultations with the WCO Private Sector Consultative Group (PSCG) that helped the WCO identify bottlenecks in trade processes and jointly explored potential solutions involving other international organisations. Dr. Mikuriya added that the ICC’s continued support was anticipated for the further development of the WCO guidelines for business continuity planning during the COVID-19 pandemic and in other similar situations.
The WCO also provided an insight into the ongoing work on the WCO E-Commerce Package and welcomed the ICC Commission Chairperson’s contribution by co-chairing the WCO Working Group on E-Commerce. Additionally, the ICC’s continuing commitment to the implementation of and future maintenance mechanism for the WCO Framework of Standards on Cross-Border E-Commerce was highlighted. The WCO concluded by stressing the enduring cooperation between the two organisations with a view to moving towards more resilient supply chains, demonstrating the convergence between the ICC’s interest in “digitisation and the circular economy” and the WCO’s theme for this year: “Customs Fostering Sustainability for People, Prosperity and the Planet”.
Story by: Riaan de Lange