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The Bureau of Customs recognized 25 key member organizations under the Customs Industry Consultative and Advisory Council for their contributions in the customs bureau’s reform agenda
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The key CICAC members received World Customs Organization Certificates of Merit for their “excellence, partnership, and commitment to facilitating trade and securing borders”
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) has recognized 25 key member organizations under its Customs Industry Consultative and Advisory Council (CICAC) for their contributions in the customs bureau’s reform agenda.
The key CICAC members received World Customs Organization Certificates of Merit for their “excellence, partnership, and commitment to facilitating trade and securing borders” during BOC’s commemoration of International Customs Day on January 27, the bureau said in a statement.
Some of the organizations that received recognition were the Philippine Multimodal Transport and Logistics Association, Inc., Philippine Chamber of Customs Brokers, Inc. and the Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc.
Created under Customs Memorandum Order (CMO) No. 02-2024, CICAC is a consultative body with industry groups to enlist their support and active participation in advancing the reform agenda of the bureau. It also aims to help in addressing existing and potential issues related to Customs and industry matters.
The CICAC’s functions include conducting regular consultative meetings and dialogues to discuss trade environment trends and updates, apprise industry partners about Customs policies and programs, and address issues and concerns relating to their implementation.
The central CICAC is led by Customs Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio while each of the 17 collection districts also established their own consultative body.
Since its establishment last year, BOC has regularly conducted CICAC meetings monthly.
CICAC member and Distilled Spirit Association of the Philippines president Olivia Limpe-Aw noted the council’s role in strengthening BOC-private sector collaboration, stating, “For the one year that we have been working together, we truly have experienced trade facilitation—we experienced the beauty of having a platform where we can air our concerns in the private sector, and because of that, we are able to really, correctly, and more accurately determine the problems faced. We are also able to come up with more strategic solutions, and of course, we have solved a lot of it. We are able to put it into action, all these strategies and solutions.”
