OSCE Centre supports regional conference on customs risk management in Astana
ASTANA, 22 May 2014 – An OSCE-supported regional conference on risk management in the context of customs enforcement, including international co-operation and information exchange in order to enhance communications strategies, started today in framework of the Seventh Astana Economic Forum.
The two-day event was organised by the OSCE Centre in Astana, the Customs Control Committee of the Finance Ministry and the World Customs Organization. It brought together more than 150 leading international experts, high-ranking representatives of the customs services from China, Finland, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, the Netherlands, Russia, Serbia and Turkey as well as representatives of international organizations and foreign and domestic businesses.
Bakhyt Sultanov, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Kazakhstan said: “For government structures and commercial companies efficient management and clear financial policies are of paramount importance. The use of risk management in state governance is the key. We need to constantly upgrade the risk management system in order to progress, and today’s event is a part of these efforts.”
The conference will focus on the European experience in the application and efficiency of risk management systems, related problems and solutions, establishment of co-operation between customs enforcement administrations and the business community as well as strategies to improve the Eurasian Economic Union’s risk management systems. An expert from the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities will present the Organization’s activities in this field.
“The OSCE prioritizes the customs risk management system because it establishes an optimal balance between the customs control as a law-enforcement instrument, the efforts to protect national security and people’s lives and health as well as steps aimed at facilitating international trade,” said Ambassador Natalia Zarudna, Head of the OSCE Centre in Astana. “It is also an effective tool to reduce corruption in foreign commercial relations.”
The event is part of the Centre’s of joint activities with the Finance Ministry’s Customs Control Committee to promote trade facilitation and good governance in Kazakhstan and the wider region.