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SMART Borders

The SMART borders concept encourages WCO members to delve into the realm of technology to find solutions to facilitate the flow of people, goods and conveyances at borders while following the guiding principles for SMART borders: Secure, Measurable, Automated, Risk Management-based and Technology-driven.
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AEO

Founded on the Customs-to-Business (C-2-B) pillar of WCO SAFE, an Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) is a party involved in the international movement of goods. This involvement can take place in whatever function that has been approved by or on behalf of a national Customs administration in compliance with WCO or equivalent supply chain security standards.
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Education and Awareness

WCO Instruments and Tools
To achieve its objectives, the WCO has adopted several customs instruments, including the SAFE Framework of Standards, the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC), the Risk Management Compendium, and the AEO Compendium, among others.
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Research in the Region

Various institutions (such as the WCO, WTO, WB, ITC, UNCTAD, etc.) produce necessary research around Customs and trade-related matters concerning the private sector throughout the ESA region. The WCO ESA RPSG aims to share many of these on the website and consequently avoid working in silos and letting pertinent enquiries fall through the cracks.
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Measurements

in the ESA Region
The WCO ESA RPSG monitors important international metrics for each member country, most notably the World Bank’s (WB) Ease of Doing Business Trading Across Borders component. The metric records the time and cost associated with the logistical process of exporting and importing goods, which in turn provides significant insight into trading with ESA member countries.
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Non-Tariff Barriers

(NTB) in the ESA Region
Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) refer to restrictions that result from prohibitions, conditions, or specific market requirements that make importation or exportation of products difficult and costly. Still, these restrictions include the unjustified and improper application of Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs), such as sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures and other technical barriers to Trade (TBT).
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