Today (13.03.2023) it was inaugurated the VIII Regional Meeting of the Global Container Control Program (GCCP) for Latin America and the Caribbean in the City of Montevideo. The event marks the beginning of this important working meeting, where the Government of the Republic of Uruguay reaffirmed its commitment to fight against transnational organized crime and guarantee the security of legal maritime trade.
Thus, the Minister of Economy and Finance, Azucena Arbeleche, stated at the opening that the current Administration is committed, from the beginning, to a frontal fight against drug trafficking. “Controls at ports and border crossings are essential,” he said and affirmed that it is It is a priority to have non-intrusive instruments to verify the merchandise that enters, transits and leaves the country.
In his speech, Arbeleche especially thanked the United States and Canada for their support in helping Uruguay join the list of countries with offices implemented in the Container Control Program in 2022 and revealed that the United Nations Organization selected the country as the venue for the regional meeting based on the results obtained.
This effort, demonstrated by the National Customs Directorate, has been reflected in a significant number of seizures. Namely, since March 2020, more than 5.000 kilograms of substances and narcotics have been seized, according to Arbeleche's statements.
Scanners operational from 2024
In turn, the National Director of Customs, Jaime Borgiani, reported that the new scanners will be operational in 2024. These tools allow up to 70% of the cargo to be analyzed, although the official estimated that the average will be 20% or 25%. Currently, 6% is scanned, a task that is complemented by the inter-institutional collaboration of the Ministries of the Interior, Defense, as well as the Prefecture, plus coordination with foreign customs.
According to Borgiani, one of these instruments will be transportable, which will allow for the control of highly active border areas. For example: the ports of Nueva Palmira (Colonia) and Fray Bentos (Río Negro).
Regarding the seizures carried out, the official commented that the most common ones are containers in transit, while exports originating in Uruguay have not been affected. He also announced that the National Customs Directorate will incorporate 130 officials to the 500 currently active.
This international event brings together delegations from Member States participating in the Global Container Control Program with the aim of generating a space for the exchange of ideas, experiences, techniques and knowledge on topics related to the subject.
It should be noted that global dependence on maritime trade, combined with sophisticated concealment methods used by drug traffickers and new routes for illicit drug trafficking, makes seizure of drugs very difficult. This situation poses a serious threat to the supply of international trade as well as to sustainable development.
In this context, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the World Customs Organization (WCO)) have jointly developed the Global Container Control Program, whose objective is to promote the inter-institutional and multi-sectoral operational cooperation between the security forces of States in order to improve port security and prevent the use of legitimate maritime cargo containers for illicit activities.
The fundamental purpose of the program is the creation of Joint Control Units (UCC) for the risk analysis of containers in the different ports of each country. These units are located in a secure environment, preferably within the ports and with front-line personnel from the agencies responsible for ensuring compliance with the law.
The program has a global reach and seeks to achieve faster and safer trade through an objective analysis of containerized cargo.
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