KCS chief bolsters cooperation with Africa

Korea Customs Service (KCS) Commissioner Ko Kwang-hyo, right, speaks with Alphayo Japani Kidata, the commissioner general of the Tanzania Revenue Authority, during their meeting at KCS headquarters in Daejeon, Oct. 31. Courtesy of KCS

Korea Customs Service (KCS) Commissioner Ko Kwang-ho is stepping up efforts to promote Korea’s indigenous electronic customs clearance system, UNI-PASS, after taking office in July.

On Oct. 31, Ko met Alphayo Japani Kidata, the commissioner general of the Tanzania Revenue Authority, to discuss measures to advance the Tanzania Customs Integrated System (TANCIS) that benchmarked UNI-PASS.

The East African country became the first in the region to adopt Korea’s electronic customs clearance system in 2014.

“I give my word to spare no efforts in offering advice, human resources and other supports that Tanzania may need on its path to fully digitize its customs clearance system,” Ko said during the meeting with Kidata at KCS headquarters in Daejeon.

He expressed hope that, through the advancement of Tanzania’s customs clearance, the two countries can facilitate trade further. Trade between the two countries reached record $3.97 billion in 2022, surpassing the $3 billion mark for the first time.

Ko has been emphasizing cooperation with African countries, having hosted a meeting with African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) Secretary General Wamkele Mene less than a month after he took office, July 7.

AfCFTA is an intra-Africa economic bloc that took effect in 2021, opening access to a population of almost 1.4 billion by removing trade barriers.

Concerning Korea’s role in economic integration in Africa, Ko said that the KCS will cooperate with AfCFTA to “come up with a unified, tailor-made customs clearance system for its member countries and also seek ways to fund relevant costs.”

Korea has exported its UNI-PASS to 16 countries, including six in Africa.