Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya
Beitbridge Bureau
CUSTOMS and enforcement officials from Europe and Eastern and Southern Africa are holding a three-day strategic engagement in Mauritius to strengthen cooperation against illicit trade.
The meeting is the 23rd National Contact Points (NCP) Meeting of the World Customs Organisation (WCO) Regional Intelligence Liaison Office for Eastern and Southern Africa (RILO ESA), which is currently underway in Mauritius.
In a statement on Friday, the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) said the three-day meeting has brought together customs and enforcement representatives from Europe and across Eastern and Southern Africa under the theme “Three Days, One Common Mission: Combating Illicit Trade Through Intelligence and Cooperation.”
“The NCP meeting provides a strategic platform for member administrations to review operational performance, identify emerging threats and strengthen regional intelligence-led enforcement,” said Zimra.
“Discussions will focus on improving the quality of information captured in the Customs Enforcement Network (CEN), strengthening information exchange, leveraging technology and making greater use of WCO intelligence and enforcement tools.
“The message is clear: illicit trade does not respect borders and neither should our intelligence cooperation.”
The meeting comes at a time when customs administrations across the region are facing growing challenges from smuggling, drug trafficking, commercial fraud and illicit movement of goods.
Zimra said that together, regional customs administrations are working to strengthen intelligence networks needed to detect, disrupt and dismantle illicit activities while facilitating legitimate trade.
The revenue authority said it was participating in the meeting as part of its commitment to modern customs administration and regional cooperation.
