2010 WCO PICARD Conference - Partnership in Customs Academic Research and Development

The 5th Annual PICARD Conference will be held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates from 23 to 25 November 2010.

Customs and its academic partners will provide perspectives on key issues impacting cross-border trade at the fifth annual WCO Partnership in Customs Academic Research and Development (PICARD) Conference.

The conference is being jointly organised by the WCO and INCU (International Network of Customs Universities) and co-hosted by the Centre for Customs and Excise Studies of the University of Canberra and the Abu Dhabi University Knowledge Group.

WCO Secretary General, Kunio Mikuriya said, “This conference will provide Customs and the academic world with an ideal opportunity to meet as partners once again and dialogue on topical issues that strengthen the Customs profession and enhance Customs-research activities.”

The 2010 PICARD Conference will focus on the following specific issues:

• Customs Business partnerships – examining the objectives and expectations of such partnerships, and ways to improve public and private sector performance through partnerships
• Performance measurement – with a view to identifying appropriate methods to measure and benchmark Customs performance;
• Customs and Revenue Collection derived from Customs Duties, VAT, and other taxes on traded goods– with a focus on ways of mitigating revenue risks caused by misclassification and misdescription, under-valuation, over-valuation, origin fraud, informal trade, and corruption;
• The Impact of Climate Change on International Trade and Customs Management in the post-Copenhagen Era – the consequences of climate change policies on trade facilitation, revenue collection, and supply chain security with a focus on issues such as Border tax adjustments (BTAs), carbon leakage, VAT fraud on carbon credits, trade barriers to Clean Development Mechanisms (especially clean technologies).

In examining and analysing these issues, conference participants will be encouraged to identify a range of solutions to address identified concerns, with a particular emphasis on capacity building, improving performance and research opportunities to address identified needs.

A key aim of the Conference is to provide a truly global representation of the issues, and consequently it is intended to include presentations that represent diverse geographic views.

The conference is intended for:

• Senior Customs executives responsible for Customs reform and modernization strategies;
• Strategic management and planning; or
• Trade Policy issues
• Universities and research institutions with an interest in Customs related research and education
• Trade executives and service providers
• Representatives from Donor and other international organizations.

The conference will be held in English with interpretation in Arabic, French and Spanish

Conference Brochure:  English    Arabic    French   Spanish

For further information about the conference and online registration, please visit the PICARD 2010 website.