Participants at a Regional Training for Customs Authorities on Technical Aspects of CWC Transfers’ Regime, which was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina
The OPCW and National Authority of Argentina jointly organised a training course for customs officers on the technical aspects of the transfers’ regime of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) from 28 to 31 October 2014 in Buenos Aires, with 29 participants from 21 States Parties in Latin America and the Caribbean.*
The course was opened by Ambassador Carolina Perez Colman, Deputy Secretary of Foreign Policy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Dr Gustavo Mingone, Deputy Secretary General of the Argentina Customs Authorities. It was closed by Minister Sergio Perez Gunella, Executive Secretary of the National Authority of Argentina.
The course included an overview of the CWC, the OPCW and the role of National Authorities; the need for effective stakeholder engagement with customs authorities; and the transfer-related provisions of the CWC and identification of chemicals relevant to the Convention, including recommendations of the World Customs Organization to identify Scheduled chemicals in the Harmonised System. The course familiarized participants with the Handbook on Chemicals, the Online Scheduled Chemicals Database, the OPCW Central Analytical Database and other useful databases and websites.
Participants discussed discrepancies in the reporting of transfers of Scheduled chemicals and practical customs-related matters such as the control of Scheduled chemicals in ports and free zones, risk assessment, trans-shipments, and software for customs services. A field trip to the Argentina port provided first-hand experience with how Argentina’s Customs Authority handles imported and exported chemicals, including those listed in the CWC schedules.
The training had a “train-the-trainers” focus and participants are expected to transfer the knowledge and experiences acquired during the course to their colleagues.
* Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Uruguay.