As Ebola outbreaks sound renewed alarms and natural disasters devastate communities, ensuring rapid delivery of relief supplies to those in need remains critical. The World Customs Organization (WCO) is taking proactive steps to build resilient humanitarian corridors across West and Central Africa through field missions, capacity building, and process optimization.
Collaborative Assessment Mission in Liberia
From May 1-4, 2018, the WCO partnered with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) to conduct a pivotal assessment mission in Monrovia, Liberia. This mission forms part of the WCO's Customs for Relief of Epidemic Diseases (C-RED) project, funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which enhances customs facilitation and response capabilities across six beneficiary countries in the region.
The mission's objectives included evaluating Liberia's operational needs, strengthening inter-agency coordination for relief clearance, and developing standardized procedures aligned with international best practices.
Multi-Stakeholder Engagement
The four-day mission convened representatives from Liberia's Revenue Authority, Ministries of Finance, Foreign Affairs, Health, Commerce, and Agriculture, alongside humanitarian agencies including the National Disaster Management Agency, World Food Programme, UNICEF, and WHO.
Participants identified key challenges in humanitarian supply chain management and collaboratively refined draft Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for relief clearance. The discussions yielded actionable recommendations with defined timelines for implementation.
Key Outcomes and Recommendations
- Needs Assessment: Documented infrastructure gaps, procedural bottlenecks, and communication barriers affecting relief operations
- Enhanced Coordination: Established frameworks for improved collaboration between customs, government agencies, and humanitarian partners
- SOP Development: Created draft procedures covering declaration, inspection, and release processes for expedited clearance
- Capacity Building: Planned specialized training programs for customs officials on emergency response protocols
- Information Sharing: Proposed mechanisms for real-time data exchange on relief needs and clearance status
Standard Operating Procedures Framework
The draft SOPs incorporate several operational improvements:
- Streamlined declaration processes with electronic submission options
- Priority inspection lanes for humanitarian shipments
- Duty exemption mechanisms for relief goods
- Inter-agency coordination committees for crisis response
- Contingency plans for emergency scenarios
Global Cooperation for Local Impact
The mission underscores the importance of international partnerships in addressing transnational challenges. Through technical assistance and knowledge transfer, the WCO-OCHA collaboration demonstrates how global organizations can strengthen national response systems.
The Liberia assessment marks a significant milestone in the C-RED project's implementation, with planned follow-up activities to operationalize the recommendations. This initiative exemplifies how targeted customs modernization can enhance humanitarian outcomes across vulnerable regions.