On December 11, the Customs Committee of Uzbekistan hosted a meeting of the heads of customs services of member states of the Organization of Turkic States.

The event was attended by representatives of relevant structures of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye, and Uzbekistan, as well as heads of the customs service of the observer state – Hungary, and the Secretariat of the Organization of Turkic States. The head of the Customs Service of Georgia was the guest of honor at the meeting.

It should be noted that the international community greeted the creation of the Customs Clearance Center with great interest, which was launched on August 29 this year during the visit of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the Customs Committee. The new complex includes a data processing center, a remote electronic declaration post, a call center, targeting and risk management departments.

In addition, the resolution of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On additional measures to further improve customs administration” of April 27, 2022, set tasks for the sector’s digital transformation, improving the quality and speed of service provision.

To date, 116 customs officers carry out remote clearance of goods at a centralized remote electronic declaration post with limited direct communication with entrepreneurs. This customs post covers 50 percent of the total declarations submitted in the country (3 thousand per day).

By achieving a unified approach to the design of goods, the costs of entrepreneurs are significantly reduced.

The guests were also greatly impressed by the central customs laboratory – a new example of active cooperation between Uzbekistan and the World Customs Organization. Only 10 countries in the world have such laboratories with the status of a regional customs laboratory of the World Customs Organization.

The laboratory is equipped with modern equipment, and its activities aim to reduce the examination duration and increase accuracy.

Aziza Alimova, UzA