What began a year ago as a pilot test that consisted of an inter-institutional coordination program in a port terminal, now became the Task Force for Trade Facilitation.
The ministries of the Interior, Defense and Agriculture will work together with the Customs Office of the Superintendency of Tax Administration (SAT) in the issuance and reception of national and international alerts to monitor containers with merchandise that may represent a threat to health. , security or the state coffers.
This working group will also have support and cooperation from other international agencies such as Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the International Counternarcotics Assistance and Law Enforcement Office (INL), both of the United States.
What does it consist of?
During the pilot plan, we worked with all the authorities that comprise it, strengthening capacities to have better profiles and risk analysis to combat fraud, smuggling and the entry/exit of illicit goods that are related to chemical substances or drugs, emphasized Edwin Curtidor Juárez, acting Customs Mayor, when explaining the functions of this operational force.
To achieve this, we invested in technological capacity, better processes and international practices, as well as specialization to carry out physical inspections of containers at key points and on board ships, in addition to training personnel to detect illegal acts or potential risks.
National security issue
The Vice Minister of the Interior and former Customs Superintendent, Werner Ovalle, explained some details and scope of the work that the new body will carry out, indicating that the pilot test generated a communication and coordination mechanism to advance on these issues, since security and Port controls are a priority in the current government management and in the coordination agenda with the United States government.
Therefore, a series of high-level meetings were held with senior officials of the US Department of Homeland Security, on port security as a fundamental issue because it is vital to guarantee the advancement of commercial relations between both. economies.
Regarding the scope of the agreement, Ovalle mentioned that although the pilot plan began at the Empresa Portuaria Quetzal (EPQ) in Escuintla, for one year, the presence of the Task Force for Trade Facilitation will be seen in all seaports.
“This will allow us to profile containers, improve risk management and detect issues of interest to the SAT such as smuggling and customs fraud; but also issues of importance to the Ministry of the Interior, such as the detection of narcotics and shipments of chemical precursors.”
Then, the task will be expanded to the Santo Tomás de Castilla National Port Company (Empornac) in Izabal, and Puerto Barrios, and soon the scope will reach air cargo at the Combex customs and the facilities of the La Aurora International Airport.
“To the extent that we can strengthen profiling and risk management, we will also have more controls in all areas of the seaports and also at the airport, which is one of the priorities, according to presidential indications,” he said in the statement. Press conference.
He concluded that the goal is to achieve greater security in seaports, but under a strategy of contributing to competitiveness and trade facilitation, considering that the United States is Guatemala’s main trading partner, in terms of exports and imports, which in the 2023 totaled US$14,560.7 million.
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