Namibia to host World Customs Organisation East and Southern Africa regional meetings
Written by on May 16, 2024
The Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) will host the 39th Regional Steering Group (RSG) Meeting and the 30th Governing Council (GC) Meeting of the World Customs Organization East and Southern Africa (WCO ESA) Region.
These meetings will be held from 20 to 24 May.
NamRa spokesperson Yarukeekuro Ndorokaze said the choices made at the 29th Governing Council meeting in Madagascar last year will be the main focus of the RSG meeting.
“The execution of trade agreements, revenue mobilisation, modernisation of customs and employee welfare will be important topics of debate,” Ndorokaze said.
Ndorokaze said the GC meeting is expected to be attended by commissioners from all 24 WCO ESA member states, while the secretary general of the World Customs Organisation, Ian Saunders is also scheduled to attend.
He said the meeting will be officially opened by Namibia’s minister of finance and public enterprises Ipumbu Shiimi.
“This is the second time in two years that NamRA will be hosting a WCO secretary general. The former secretary general, Kunio Mikuriya, visited Namibia in July 2022,” he said.
Ndorokaze said the WCO ESA is one of six regions under the WCO’s global leadership and it plays an important role in providing leadership in sustainable customs capacity building and change management.
“The Namibia Revenue Agency is responsible for administering customs and excise duties, taxes and other levies in Namibia. It was created in April 2023 by merging the Namibia Revenue Agency and the Namibia Customs and Excise,” Ndorokaze said.
The WCO is an intergovernmental organisation that works to ensure the smooth and efficient flow of trade across borders. It currently has 183 member states.
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