Paris, France, 2 February 2023 ‒ Green Customs Initiative (GCI) partners gathered in Paris, France for their 17th Annual meeting on 24 and 25 January 2023 to discuss their work plan of activities for 2023. The meeting was hosted and coordinated by the OzonAction Branch at their UNEP office in Paris.
OzonAction’s Head of Branch, Mr. James Curlin in his welcome remarks to the GCI Partners said, “OzonAction is a long-standing member of the Green Customs Initiative and we have been supporting it from day one as part of UNEP’s mandate as an Implementing Agency of the Montreal Protocol’s Multilateral Fund. This is a very tangible, practical form of cooperation that has few peers within the UN system – coordinated delivery of capacity building services on the ground for Member States related to multiple multilateral environmental agreements. This initiative is the embodiment of the UN’s Delivering as One and merits more attention and support.”
The GCI meeting was opened sequentially by Ms. Patricia Kameri-Mbote, UNEP’s Law Division Director and head of the GCI Secretariat, Mr. Rolph Payet, Executive Secretary of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions and Ms. Megumi Seki, Executive Secretary of the Ozone Secretariat. The three officials highlighted and noted the significant role played by customs in advancing compliance with multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). Additionally, they commended the GCI activities and recognition by the United Nations General Assembly’s resolution on preventing and combating crimes that affect the environment.
There were a number of key topics discussed during the meeting including the individual and joint customs activities for 2022, the enforcement operations Thunder 2022, Demeter VIII, and the Green Customs Global Conference, the outcomes of the Conference of Parties for MEAs in 2022, the joint customs training and development of customs national curricula and the Green Customs Guide to MEAs.
Additional sessions covered fostering MEA synergies, particularly between the BRS conventions and the Montreal Protocol to the Vienna Convention, implementing new customs harmonized codes and strengthening the GCI. Furthermore, the sessions’ plenaries provided an opportunity to discuss specific issues such as enhancing voluntary and mandatory reporting for MEAs, promoting Customs’ role in a circular economy, enhancing gender integration in the partners’ and customs work, deepening linkages between trade and the environment, and understanding environmental terminologies relevant to customs.
The meeting concluded with a commitment to amplifying the initiative’s impacts through robust resource mobilization, increased collaborative efforts and implementation of a 2023 joint work plan. The agreed upon 2023 GCI activities include joint training workshops; updates of GCI related courses on CliKC! (Customs Learning and Knowledge Community) a WCO learning platform for Customs Officers; and a publication on gender and green customs.
Detailed information about GCI activities will be available on the new GCI website, which will be launched soon.
About GCI
The GCI, launched in 2004, is a partnership of international entities cooperating to prevent the illegal trade in environmentally-sensitive commodities and substances and to facilitate their legal trade. Its objective is to enhance the capacity of customs and other relevant border control officers to monitor and facilitate legal trade and to detect and prevent illegal trade in environmentally sensitive commodities covered by relevant trade related Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) and international conventions.
These commodities include ozone depleting substances (ODS), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), toxic chemicals, hazardous wastes, endangered species and certain living-modified organisms. The objective of the GCI is achieved through awareness-raising on all relevant international agreements and providing assistance and tools to the customs community. Green Customs Initiative is designed to complement and enhance existing customs training efforts under the respective agreements.
OzonAction and GCI
UNEP OzonAction’s involvement with the GCI is through its mandate, the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. Through the Compliance Assistance Programme, OzonAction has organized a series of customs training workshops and joint workshops in partnership with National Ozone Units to build their capacity and cooperation in monitoring and controlling illegal trade. A variety of guidelines, awareness and training materials for Customs and Enforcement Officers were produced by OzonAction in collaboration with the Ozone Secretariat.
For more information:
Wanja Wanjiru
Associate Legal Officer
National Environmental Law Unit
Email: jackline.wanjiru[at]un.org
