WCO marks the 40th anniversary of the Enforcement Committee

BRUSSELS : On 27 March, Dr Kunio Mikuriya, the Secretary General of the World Customs Organization (WCO) opened the 43rd Session of the Enforcement Committee (EC), which will last a week, at the WCO HeadquartersinBrussels,Belgium,thusalsomarkingthe 40thanniversaryoftheEC,createdin1983.

In his keynote speech, Secretary General Mikuriya recalledtheevolutionoftheEnforcementCommitteeover the years, comparing today’s state of play to the sessions he attended 25 years ago as a national delegate. He mentioned five areas of evolution, namely: the scope in respondingtotheneedforenhancedsupplychainsecurity; technology, through the use of the WCO Customs Enforcement Network (CEN) and data analysis; operationsforraisingthevisibilityofCustomscontribution toprotectsocietyatbordersandprovidecapacitybuilding; intelligenceandriskmanagement,toimproveintelligence and risk management tools; and cooperation with partners. Dr Mikuriya wished further progress in the WCO enforcement and compliance activities to protect society and citizens in line with this year’s theme: Nurturing the Next Generation: Promoting Culture of Knowledge-sharingandProfessionalPrideinCustoms”.

The Enforcement Committee had a special agenda itemtocelebratethe40thanniversarywithavideo.

Members, representative of INTERPOL, Regional Intelligence Liaison Offices (RILOs) and Observers also shared their experience with regard to the Committee meetings and highlighted the Enforcement Committee’s achievements and guidance

Established in 1983, the Enforcement Committee is the leading global forum for WCO Members to discuss Customs Compliance & Enforcement related matters, in order to identify new trends, work priorities and coordinate global and regional cooperation