October 28: Nadi, Fiji – The Oceania Customs Organisation (OCO) and Australian Border Force (ABF) are working to strengthen revenue protection across the Pacific region with the commencement of the Revenue Evasion Master Class in Nadi, Fiji.
The three-day workshop, running from October 28-30, brings together customs officials from twelve Pacific nations in an effort to enhance regional capabilities in combating revenue evasion and illicit trade.
“This masterclass represents a crucial step in strengthening our region’s customs capabilities,” said OCO Head of Secretariat, Nancy T. Oraka. “With the evolving nature of trade and emerging threats to revenue collection, it’s essential that our member administrations are equipped with the latest tools and techniques to combat revenue evasion.”
Participating nations include Cook Islands, Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
“The participation of twelve member countries demonstrates our region’s strong commitment to addressing revenue evasion collectively,” Ms. Oraka emphasised. “With illicit trade costing the global economy an estimated US$2.2 trillion annually, this training will enhance our region’s ability to protect government revenue and combat non-compliance.”
The strong regional participation underscores the Pacific’s unified approach to addressing revenue protection challenges.
“This master class is another step towards ensuring that rules of trade are adhered to and where traders attempt to circumvent Customs laws, they will be targeted, and, appropriate compliance and enforcement actions will be undertaken. Training activities like this enhance our collective capability and furthers opportunities for collaboration as a region to detect revenue evasion and protect our economies,” Australian Border Force’s, Trade Risk & Enforcement Inspector Aneeta Kakoschke said.
The masterclass focuses on developing critical skills including threat identification, data analysis, risk-based targeting, and advanced audit techniques. Participants will engage in practical exercises designed to strengthen their capabilities in implementing risk-based customs activities and improving intelligence gathering and sharing.
“We are grateful for the Australian Border Force’s continued support in building regional capacity,” Ms. Oraka added. “This partnership exemplifies the strong bonds between customs administrations in our region and our shared commitment to protecting our economies.”
The initiative aims to enhance regional customs operations and protect Pacific economies through improved revenue collection and enforcement capabilities.
ENDS.