Brussels, 30/06/2005 (Agence Europe) - Michel Danet, Secretary General of the World Customs Organisation (WCO) was delighted to announce (after the adoption of this strategy) on 24 June that “almost 100 countries said yes to the 'Standards Framework'”. The objective of this strategy is to secure and facilitate international trade. According to Danet, “in an environment that is more uncertain, even dangerous”, this Standards Framework represents a “unique instrument” for a round a hundred countries - among the 166 WCO countries - which have already demonstrated a commitment to applying it. Strengthening the administrative capacity of less developed countries (LDC) represents a main challenge in the implementation of the 17 standards in this framework (11 for cooperation between customs administrations and 6 for customs and enterprise cooperation). Michel Danet judges “cooperation between countries of the North and countries of the South” as an “extremely positive element” and pointed out that “we are currently mobilising the will, the funding and the expertise”. The WCO Standards Framework aims to ensure security in the logistical chain and facilitate integrated management of this chain. It will strengthen cooperation within the customs union, as well as between customs authorities and enterprise though a consultative committee soon to be set up. The four main components of the Standards Framework are as follows: 1) approximation of intelligence before declaration of loading, which has to be sent by e-mail for dispatching, at the outset and for transit; 2) apply a coherent approach for risk management as part of fight against security threats; 3) inspection of containers and high risk freight at outset; 4) provide incentives to companies that respect minimum norms in logistical chain security.
Robert Verrue, Director of Taxation and Customs Union at the European Commission indicated that “We are very actively involved in this exercise”. He warned that, “an absence of developments in this domain would represent an enormous economic cost”. Verrue also highlighted the importance of making customs revenue reliable for countries that apply the Standards Framework. Implementing the Framework, was a “challenge” and that the EU was prepared to “participate in all cooperation action” that “substantially strengthened the administrative capacity of a certain number of countries”. According to Robert Bonner, the Commissioner for US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the WCO's adoption of the Standards Framework represented a global response to the threat of terrorism and that its implementation by the customs authorities would make world trade more of a reality. The US authorities have announced the creation of a specific department at the CBP for strengthening administrative capacity. Representatives from Guinea refuted the hypothesis of a journalist who claimed that the new framework could represent a new trade barrier to LDCs. She explained that this framework was adopted by her country and by all the countries of her region and that it was not an obstacle. She added that they did not want to be marginalised in world trade but recognised that there was an implementation problem. The WCO will be striving to assist Member States in determining their own needs for strengthening their capacity and suggesting possible solutions to them.