The World Customs Organization (WCO) has re-elected Ricardo Treviño Chapa, 44, as Deputy Secretary General for a five-year term, with the strong vote of delegates from Member countries (including Argentina). The appointment is loaded with symbolism because it is the second time a man from Mexico is taking on the role, and also because it falls to someone born in Latin America.
The decision, taken this Saturday (25.06.2022) in Brussels (Belgium) during a session of the WCO Council, which is made up of 184 countries, comes at a time when the organization is celebrating its 70th Anniversary, evaluating its achievements and how to respond to current challenges.
The Deputy Secretary General of the flagship customs institution has an extensive background in International Finance and Global Banking; he worked for 20 years in the public sector of the Government of Mexico until becoming General Administrator of Customs and held the position of Regional Vice President of the WCO for the Americas and the Caribbean. The other candidate he was competing with was the former Director General of Information and International Affairs of the Korean Customs Service and current Director of Capacity Development of the WCO, Kang Tae-il.
In his proposal for re-election, the new Deputy Secretary General paid special attention to the technologies and innovation, green customs and governance of the Organization through process modernization, transparency and inclusion.
Precisely, the election begins the adoption of the WCO Strategic Plan for the period 2022-2025, which includes such Secretariat priorities as were approved by the supreme body of the Organization.
With this achievement, Ricardo Treviño is the eighth Deputy Secretary General in the history of the institution created in 1952 under the name of the Customs Cooperation Council.
According to the work of Hector Juarez Allende entitled The World Customs Organization: Past, Present and Future (*), the previous Deputy Secretaries General of the WCO were: Edward Floyd Kilpatrick (1972-1976), Michel Auge (1982-1991), Pierre Benet (1992-1996), Leonid Lozbenko (1997-2001), Kunio Mikuriya (2002-2008), Sergio Mujica Montes (2010-2017) and Ricardo Treviño Chapa (2017-2022).
From its inception to the present, this Organization continues its focus on being a dynamic leader in modernization and connectivity in a rapidly changing world. In addition, it continues to support internationally the multiple functions of Customs that span trade, revenue collection and national security issues.
The WCO began with 17 Customs Administrations; it currently brings together 184 Members representing 98% of global trade.
(*) JUAREZ ALLENDE, Hector Hugo: «The World Customs Organization: Past, Present and Future«. Editorial Tirant Lo Blanch, City of Valencia, Spain. Year 2021. Access link: https://editorial.tirant.com/es/libro/la-organizacion-mundial-de-aduanas-pasado-presente-y-futuro-hector-hugo-juarez-allende-9788413558943
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