Chairman CBIC Inaugurates Regional Contact Point (RCP) Three Days Meeting of Asia Pacific Region of WCO at Jaipur

· India Assumes Vice Chair of Asia Pacific Region for WCO

· Delegations from More than 25 Countries along with Regional Bodies of WCO Attending

A Regional Contact Point (RCP) meeting of Asia Pacific (A/P) Region of World Customs Organisation (WCO) is being organized by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) at Jaipur from 14th to 16th November, 2018 as a part of the functions of Vice Chair of A/P Region of WCO. Customs delegations from more than twenty five countries of the A/P region along with the regional bodies of the WCO, Regional Office for Capacity Building (ROCB), Regional Intelligence Liaoning Office (RILO) are also attending the meeting

The meeting was inaugurated by the Chairman, CBIC Mr. S. Ramesh. In his remarks, Chairman, CBIC reiterated the following strategic guiding principles while working as the Vice Chair of the A/P region –

i. Greater communication and connectivity within the region

ii. Harness technology advancements

iii. Inclusive approach

iv. Consensus on core issues

He also talked about the key focus areas where to lay higher thrust which included the implementation of trade facilitation, cross border e- commerce transactions, working for small island economies and review of the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC).

Mr. Ricardo Trevino, Dy Secretary General of WCO was the keynote speaker. In his remarks, Mr. Ricardo discussed about various issues having importance for the region and the WCO e.g., working for the digital customs, making the RKC up to date and as per the emerging needs of the member administrations.

The meeting is being chaired by Member (Customs), CBIC Mr. P.K. Das. In addition to the mutual discussions on the Focus Areas highlighted above, the meeting will also deliberate on activities of WCO, Vice Chair office, ROCB, RILO, Regional Training Centres (RTC), security related issues, trade facilitation etc. countries will also share their experiences on WCO Regional customs laboratories set up by them to address the regional needs relating to the testing of various products exchanged during cross border trade.