OCO Workshop in Guam
The Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency (CQA) in partnership with the Oceania Customs Organisation (OCO) organized a National Workshop on the Revised Kyoto Convention on 18-22 September 2017 in Guam. Accession to and compliance with the RKC is one of the strategic thrusts of the OCO Strategic Plan 2017-2022.
The National Workshop on RKC discussed the: scope, structure and other background information on the RKC; Benefits of accession and compliance to the RKC, Customs Partnership, and other trade facilitation instruments of WCO. During the Workshop, the participants also undertook assessment of RKC standards to Guam’s existing customs laws and other regulations and practices, with a view to identifying with certainty the gaps that exist between the legal framework and the standards of the RKC. The result of the Gap Analysis was used to formulate an Action Plan for implementation of RKC. A key outcome from the Workshop is the need for CQA to develop its Strategic Plan aimed at modernizing its business processes and the platform for implementing these international instruments.
Guam CQA as part of the consultative process also organized an information session with some of its key stakeholders. The engagement was very fruitful and the issues raised by the stakeholders were noted and would be taken into account in the proposed legal amendments and related processes.
The OCO also facilitated the drafting of Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between CNMI Customs and Guam CQA. The MOU provides for collaboration between the two Customs Administrations and this was also discussed by the two Heads of Customs in the margins of the Workshop in Guam.
The Guam Chief of Customs in his closing remarks at the end of the Workshop indicated that the Customs Legislation have not undergone a review in many years and the RKC work has provided a platform for Guam to modernize its Customs processes to make it more efficient. Furthermore, the OCO assistance was a timely one that has motivated the Agency to move forward in its endeavors to reform and modernize its processes.