International Customs Day & Week 2022

NAME OF FEATURE | THE GLEANER | SUNDAY, JANUARY 30, 2022 30 J AMAICA BECAME the 128th country to become a contract- ing party to the International Convention on the Simplification and Harmonisation of Customs Procedures (otherwise known as Revised Kyoto Convention) which came into force with effect August 7, 2021. What this means is that Jamaica has 36 months for implementation of the Standards in the General Annex and 60 months for the Transitional Standards in the General Annex. As a contracting party, the country is required to be compliant with the Body of the Convention which sets out the administrative arrangements governing the convention, and the General Annex which sets out the core principles for all pro- cedures to ensure that they are uniformly applied by Customs administrations. The Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC) is considered as the blueprint of a modern customs administration and promotes trade facilitation to improve the effectiveness and pre- dictability of customs procedures. Implementing the RKC is seen as a quality standard for a modern, well-functioning Customs adminis- tration. The RKC is guided by several principles such as: • Transparency and the predicta- bility of Customs actions • Standardisation and simplifica- tion of the goods declaration and supporting documents • Maximum use of information technology • Use of risk management and use of audit based controls • Coordinated interventions with other border agencies • Partnership with the trade The manner in which Customs conduct its business has an im- pact on the movement of persons and goods in international trade, hence the accession provides a sound basis for Jamaica Customs and other key border agencies to collaborate and partner on intro- ducing modern procedures aimed at minimising the time at the ports while ensuring customs control is effectively maintained. Jamaica Customs, being mind- ful of the principles governing the convention and the benefits to be derived from this accession, already took the steps to improve its processes and procedures to be aligned with the provisions of the RKC. The new Customs Act that is currently before a Joint Select Committee in Parliament will pave the way for many of the standards to be implemented within the timelines. In addition, through its proactive approach, the JCA already positioned itself as a leader in digitalisation and automation of its customs pro- cesses through the implementa- tion of various systems, such as its ASYCUDA customs management system; partial automation of its refund application process; track and trace system for customs com- mercial declarations, among many other improvements. In addition, there are mechanisms introduced which promote collaboration with other border agencies and inclu- sion of stakeholder discussions, such as its quarterly Customs to Business Partnership committee and its Quality Assurance Monthly engagements which facilitates a system for effective feedback when new processes or proce- dures are implemented. The Jamaica Customs Agency will within the short to medium term continue to ramp up its modernisa- tion of customs procedures where applicable, as the agency is already compliant with some of the stand- ards; conduct stakeholder engage- ments and increase its partnerships with key stakeholders to maxim- ise the benefits. This will further the mandate of Trade Facilitation which promotes Simplification, Harmonisation and Standardisation, thus improving the time and cost to move goods and people at the ports. What makes this a plus is that the convention not only covers customs procedures relating to import, ex- port, processing, etc, but it includes Customs practices concerning rules that are not necessarily applicable to goods but are required to regu- late other matters, such as Customs control, appeals, and offences, to name a few. Currently, the World Customs Organisation (WCO) through its RKC Management Committee is undertaking a comprehensive re- view of the convention, which will result in more modern procedures, greater levels of trade facilitation and harmonisation among contract- ing parties. Contributed by the Trade Facilitation & Special Projects Unit, JCA Jamaica’s accession to the Revised Kyoto Convention: a plus for the JCA CUSTOMS WEEK JCA plants trees for Wellness Month JCA Plants tree at Mt. Alvernia High School As part of the JCA’s Wellness Month of activities celebrated during October 2021, a tree planting exercise was undertaken at the Mt. Alvernia High School in Montego Bay. The activity was done in collaboration with the Customs-made Optimist Club of Montego Bay, under the JCA’s ‘E - environmental’ dimension of wellness. The JCA celebrated the month under the acronym B.R.E.A.T.H.E. From: L-R - Sean Davis, Senior Employee Relations Officer, JCA, Head Girl of Mt. Alvernia High, Celia Russell-Henry, ISO Project Manager and a member of the Optimist Club, and Arlene Lawrence, Director Occupational Health and Safety, JCA. JCA undertakes Tree-planting at Port Antonio Primary School In November 2021, the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) conducted a tree-planting exercise at the Port Antonio Primary School as a part of the Agency’s ‘Month of Wellness’ environmental outreach activities. Acting Principal at Port Antonio Primary, DarenMyles, lauded the JCA team for undertaking the initiative at the Portland-based school.