Exciting news for the Southern African Customs Union
by Vusi Ngcobo
Recently the World Customs Organization (WCO), through its Accelerate Trade Facilitation Program funded by the UK; His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC); partnering with the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) Secretariat and the South African Revenue Service, hosted a workshop aimed at supporting SACU members to increase a harmonised approach towards implementing the SACU Authorised Economic Operator Mutual Recognition Arrangement (AEO-MRA).
These workshops are very critical because they will harmonise the processes followed to enable Southern African Customs Union countries to give mutual recognition to another’s AEO accredited traders. The timing of these developments have come at the right time for SMMEs in South Africa.
On Wednesday 22 May 2024, SARS launched it SMME programme. This was key milestone in the lives of SMMEs who are involved in international trade. During the launch, it was noted that already almost 20% of traders awarded with the AEO status, fall within the SMMA category.
There are huge benefits for SMMEs to be AEO accredited. It equates to be given VIP status in the trade supply chain in that you experience fewer stops than normal, your declaration identifies you as AEO accredited, thus enjoying flying through the queues. Over and above these benefits, AEO clients are allocated their own Client Relations Manager (CRM) who attends to issues experienced by the client at that time, irrespective of their locality, to achieve full resolution of those issues. What more can an SMME ask for?
Mutual Recognitions Arrangements therefore ensure that South African AEO accredited business receive the same treatment within other Southern African Customs Union countries that they enjoy here at home. If this is not an excellent way of facilitating trade within the Customs Union, then I do not know what else would be.
However, very often, these developments and initiatives introduced by customs administrations tend to leave customs official (foot soldiers) behind. They happen in an environment where officers have not had a paradigm shift and continue to address matters the same old ways they have been doing for donkeys’ years.
It therefore becomes very critical for SARS and other Southern African Customs Union customs administrations to invest a lot of time and effort in training and developing their foot soldiers to understand and appreciate the importance of these mutual recognition arrangements, and how they should model their behaviour to match the trade facilitation and rapid economic growth initiatives by the regional leaders and drop their “I don’t care” attitudes.
In closing, the Southern African Customs Union Secretariat’s Deputy Director of Trade Facilitation underlined the SACU strategic priorities as approved by the SACU Council of Ministers, underscoring the region’s commitment to enhancing trade facilitation, investment promotion and regional integration through the AEO Programme.
In this context, the Workshop focused on joint efforts to increase the uptake of the AEO Programme in the SACU member states as part of the SACU AEO MRA adopted in May 2023. This endeavour seeks to ensure a harmonised approach and clear benefits for traders with AEO status across respective SACU member countries, while expanding the AEO Programme to economic operators beyond importers and exporters.
As Mageja Customs Consultants, we encourage all traders, whether importers, exporters, transporters, and manufacturers to join the AEO program because it is good for business. It saves the cost of doing business and offers competitive advantages to participants.
We stand ready to support interested parties in getting them for accreditation. Partnering with us will make your journey towards accreditation a smooth and painless one. We are experts in the game!
Contact us today: https://magejacusconsulting.co.za/contact-us/
Yours in Customs Compliance
Vusi Ngcobo