Low paid customs officials could hinder trade: WCO

JAKARTA (JP): The World Customs Organization (WCO) warned yesterday that overworked and underpaid customs officials could bring about negative impacts on a country's international trade.

WCO secretary-general James W. Shaver told Indonesian customs officials attending a workshop here that other customs factors affecting a country's trade performance would be outdated and inefficient customs laws and practices.

"One of the obstacles to expanded trade has been and still is outdated and inefficient customs laws and practices, overworked and underpaid customs officials and a lack of attention to the positive role that a customs administration can play in international trade," Shaver said.

When asked, he declined to scrutinize Indonesia's custom administration. "I'm probably not an expert on Indonesia's customs performance."

Many local and foreign businesspeople here think underpaid civil servants, including front-line customs officials, would not be able to resist bribes and corruption. Besides, the climate which previously made the customs service corrupt has not changed much.

Most businesses are not convinced that the new customs services would be corrupt-free, especially in view of the amount of corruption in almost all government agencies.

Customs director Permana Agung has asked for budget autonomy to make the customs administration highly accountable and responsible.

Shaver underlined the need for customs administrations anywhere in the world to play a new role as trade facilitator -- in addition to their roles in the protection of society and revenue collection for the government.

"I think the concept of customs service is very, very good indeed because we are being a service to the government and a service to the private sector" Shaver told customs officials at the workshop.

He agreed with the Indonesian finance minister's plans to reduce the level of bureaucracy at customs administration and to change the current name of the customs inspection office to the customs service unit.

"I think that's right, because a bureaucratic approach is delaying, prolonging and finding reasons not to do something rather than reasons to do it and do it properly.

"The U.S. Customs is called U.S. Customs Service. It used to be the U.S Customs Bureau. It was changed to service several years ago to change back to the image that we are to service the government and the public," the secretary-general said.

Shaver also commended Indonesia's efforts to introduce the new customs law and procedures, apply various conventions under the WCO and reform its customs administration to better service the private sector.

"I think the steps that Indonesia has been taking right now are in line with global trade ... It's very impressive to me that they are now applying the conventions of the WCO," Shaver said.

To facilitate global trade, the WCO encourages its members to subscribe to the harmonized system for the description and classification of goods, the World Trade Organization code for customs valuation based on transaction value, the Kyoto Convention on customs procedures and the Nairobi Convention on customs compliance and enforcement.

Indonesia plans to implement all the systems and conventions when it implements on April 1 the new customs procedures, which include self-assessment on duty and taxes, on-arrival inspection and post-release audit.

Currently Indonesia still uses the preshipment inspection system for imports, which has been in place for 12 years. The system was introduced due to then corrupt customs services.

Shaver said some 35 countries of WCO's 139 member countries still practiced preshipment inspections for their imports, in which imports were checked at points of loading by designated surveyor firms.

He said WCO was pursuing a reforming modernization program for customs administrations in its member countries, especially those still using the preshipment system, so that they would be able to resume their inspection authority from preshipment surveyor companies.

WCO was established in Brussels in 1950 as the Customs Cooperation Council. Currently it has 139 countries as members. Each country is represented by its head of the customs administration. Indonesia became a member of the WCO in 1957. (rid)