The OCO Secretariat was represented at the WTO/UNCTAD/PIFS Regional Workshop on E-Commerce held on 20-22 June, 2017 at Sheraton Fiji Resort, Nadi, Fiji.
The main objective of the Workshop was to update the Pacific countries on recent developments in e-commerce including discussions of Pacific Islands Countries current experiences. The OCO made a presentation on the Customs implications on e-commerce transactions highlighting members’ current practices on facilitations of low-value shipments. The current work undertaken with OCO members in the implementation of customs international standards viz the WCO Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC), WCO Immediate Release Guidelines, and the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation (TFA) to further support e-commerce flows was highlighted. The opportunities for streamlining trade in terms of automation of the border processes and establishing de-minimis thresholds and low-value thresholds to enable ecommerce trade was also discussed. The Workshop provided the OCO with a good opportunity to establish networks with other development partners and understand the type of assistance that they could provide to members to strengthen their capacity (infrastructure, legislation, skills development) on e-commerce.
On 23 June, 2017 OCO also participated in the National Consultation Workshop on Cross-border Paperless Trade Facilitation in Fiji organized in collaboration with the Fiji Revenue & Customs Authority and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) held at FRCA Nasese Complex.
This workshop links to the Regional Workshop on E-Commerce, and aims to understand the Framework Agreement (FA) to promote cross-border paperless trade by enabling the exchange and mutual recognition of trade-related data and documents in electronic form. The workshop also promoted facilitation of interoperability among national and sub-regional single windows and/or other paperless trade systems, for the purpose of making international trade transactions more efficient and transparent while improving regulatory compliance.
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