RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/VAL/W/36
26 July 1999
(99-3137)
Committee on Customs Valuation Original:  English
RECENT UNITED STATES TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ACTIVITIES
The following communication1, dated 23 July 1999, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of the United States with the request that it be circulated.
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Since the entry into force of the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement in 1995, the United
States has been very active in providing technical assistance, as envisioned in Article 20:3 of the
Agreement, to WTO Members that have availed themselves of the transition period provided for
under Article 20:1.  While most of this assistance has been directed at WTO Members, there have also
been missions to several economies that are in the process of acceding to the WTO.  More recently,
the United States has channelled some its bilateral efforts into APEC and the development of APEC'sthree valuation training modules.  These modules are currently being utilized in a number of APEC
economies and have also been provided to the WCO to increase access to this valuable technical
assistance tool.  Additionally, the United States has sought to take advantage of the information that
has been developed in the Customs Valuation Committee as part of the initiative to assess individual
Member needs and to increase coherency in the provision of technical assistance.  In this regard, the
United States welcomes increased efforts in the Committee to coordinate provision of technical
assistance at bilateral, regional and multilateral levels.
The technical assistance projects related to customs valuation undertaken by the United States
since 1995 are listed below.
1995
• Conducted a two-week training program and trai n-the-trainer workshop in Kuwait City, Kuwait.
1996
• Participated with representatives from the WCO and eighteen countries in the Interamerican
Seminar on Customs Valuation in Valparaiso, Chile.
• Conducted a one-week train-the-trainer course on  behalf of the WCO for Malaysian Customs in
Melaka, Malaysia.
• Organized two eight-day training courses at the International Law Enforcement Academy in
Budapest, Hungary for customs officials from Alba nia, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, the
former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Romania and the Ukraine.
                                                     
1 Circulated informally at the meeting of the Committee on Customs Valuation on 26 April 1999.G/VAL/W/36
Page 2
1997
• In conjunction with officials from the Philippine Bureau of Customs, conducted a joint
assessment of the Bureau's potential training needs relative to the implementation of the
Agreement.
• Participated with Canada and the WCO in a seminar in Rigaud, Canada for senior customs
officials of the Caribbean and Caribbean Rim countries.
• Participated in a workshop in Cartagena, Colombia, sponsored by the Inter-American
Development Bank and the Sistema Economico Latinamericano.
• Conducted a basic course in customs valuation a nd consulted with Lithuanian Customs officials
in connection with Lithuania's implementation of the WTO Valuation Agreement.
• Conducted a course in customs valuation in Riga, Latvia for Latvian Customs.
• In conjunction with Australia and Canada, conducted assessment workshops in Chile, China,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Chinese Taipei, as part of an overall APEC technical
assistance program in the area of customs valuation.  These workshops were the first step in a
program that now includes the three training m odules on advanced valuation topics, infrastructure
considerations and the post-importation environment.
1998
• Provided the WCO basic course in customs valuation in Vilnius, Lithuania for Lithuanian
Customs.  Met with senior Customs Administrati on officials to discuss status of implementation
efforts.
• In conjunction with Revenue Canada, provided the WCO basic course for Thai Customs in
Bangkok, Thailand.
• Provided an advance course in customs valuatio n in Kiev, Ukraine for Ukrainian Customs.  Met
with senior Customs officials to discuss the status of implementation efforts.
• Provided the WCO basic course in Chisinau, Moldova for Moldovan Customs.  Met with senior
officials to discuss status of implementation efforts.
• In conjunction with Australia and Canada, drafted detailed lesson plans to be used in the APEC
technical assistance project.
• Hosted visit from the Philippine Bureau of Cust oms to the Port of Long Beach to assist the
Bureau in the techniques of maximizing trade compliance in a post importation environmentthrough a balanced program of informed comp liance, targeted enforcement actions and the
facilitation of complying cargo.
1999
• As part of module 1 of the APEC Valuation Project, conducted a training course in Chile on
valuation in conjunction with Canada.  Nineteen individuals from Chile Customs attended the
training.G/VAL/W/36
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• Conducted module 1 training course in the Philippines for twenty individuals from the Philippines
Bureau of Customs and eight observers, including four from the consulting firm being funded byUSAID to assist the Bureau of Customs with implementation of the Valuation Agreement.
• Conducted module 1 training course in Thailand for twenty participants and nine observers from
Thai Customs.
• Conducted module 1 training course in Chines e Taipei in conjunction with New Zealand.
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