The States Parties to this Agreement,
Whereas significant political and economic changes have taken place in the wider Caribbean
Basin, and the peoples concerned have expressed their desire to accept increased responsibility
in solving the problems of the area;
Whereas over the years regional customs cooperation in the wider Caribbean Basin has
developed in many fields and has rendered valuable services;
Considering the expectation that regional customs cooperation in the wider Caribbean
Basin will need to be enhanced further to cope with law enforcement, security and
trade facilitation challenges in the region;
Considering that offences against customs law are prejudicial to the security and
public policy of the members, to the health and life of humans, animals or plants,
to the national treasures possessing artistic, historic or archaeological value, to
the industrial and commercial property and to their economic, commercial, fiscal and
social interests;
Whereas in order to further enhance and intensify customs cooperation in the wider
Caribbean Basin, it is considered advisable to evaluate the experiences with the Caribbean
Customs Law Enforcement Council in the light of the political and economic changes
in the region and the new responsibilities which the customs administrations have
undertaken in recent years to fulfill their customs revenue, enforcement, security
and trade facilitation responsibilities;
Considering the continued importance of the contribution to the budget and therefore
of accurate assessment of customs duties and other taxes, and of ensuring proper enforcement
by customs administrations of prohibitions, restrictions and measures of control in
respect of specific goods;
Taking into account the threat of transnational organized crime and terrorist groups
with their substantial resources and the need to combat them effectively, using existing
and new multilateral frameworks for exchanging information and other forms of international
mutual administrative assistance;
Recognizing the increased global concern for the security and facilitation of the
international trade supply chains and the SAFE Framework of Standards to secure and
facilitate global trade adopted to that effect by the World Customs Organization;
Recognizing the importance of achieving a balance between law enforcement, security
and trade facilitation requirements by focusing on high risk goods to meet the needs
of governments for the protection of society and revenue as well as to ensure least
possible customs interference with logistics of legitimate trade flows;
Convinced that compliant international trade can and will be facilitated in particular
by the adoption by customs administrations of modern control techniques, such as risk
management based on high quality data obtained from trade and other customs administrations;
Taking into account that companies increasingly invest in supply chain security for
their own commercial purposes and that this contributes to enhanced compliance with
customs legislation;
Taking into account also that at a global level Authorized Economic Operator (AEO)
programs have been introduced and that mutual recognition agreements, allowing AEO
companies certified in one jurisdiction to enjoy benefits accorded to AEO companies
in the other, are being concluded to add to benefits for companies that consider applying
for AEO status;
Recognizing that the international and regional exchange of information and intelligence
sharing between customs administrations is an essential component of effective risk
management and that the Joint Intelligence Unit that is operated by the Caribbean
Customs Law Enforcement Council together with the World Customs Organization, plays
an important role in this respect;
Recognizing also that such international and regional exchange of information should
be based on clear and solid legal provisions;
Having regard to international agreements containing prohibitions, restrictions and
measures of control in respect of specific goods;
Recognizing the importance of ever closer practical cooperation between customs administrations
worldwide but in particular in the wider Caribbean Basin, to prevent, investigate
and combat offences against customs law;
Convinced of the need to further enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of Caribbean
customs administrations in pursuing their mandates through enhanced cooperation, sharing
of best practices, human resource development, modernization, development of IT capabilities
as well as simplification and harmonization of processes and procedures;
Desiring therefore to establish a successor body to the informal association of customs
administrations known as the Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council capable of
encouraging the required regional customs cooperation on a clear and solid legal basis
with due regard to integrity and good governance;
Desiring to continue and build upon the existing close cooperation with other regional
and international organizations that have concluded memoranda of understanding with
the Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council;
Recognizing that to the extent that a territory becomes a Member or Cooperating Partner
in accordance with this Agreement and a State is responsible for the international
relations of that territory, the constitutional relationship between the State and
that territory is respected;
Having regard to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948;
Whereas the objectives herein set forth are in accord with the Charter of the United
Nations;
