JCA’s knowledge-sharing and partnership with stakeholders – key to Jamaica’s successful AEO Programme
KNOWLEDGE-SHARING IS a vital component in any industry, especially one that provides services, which requires its stakeholders to follow various processes. It encourages collaboration and communication; it reduces support training costs while creating knowledge experts and sparks innovation and process improvement.
Increased advancements in process flow from a Technology perspective, impacts both businesses and organisations wishing to continue to thrive in an ever-changing global business environment. An organisation’s culture is an important facet as it relates to the use of information. One of the most significant factors of information sharing is an open organisational culture that guides people to associate with each other, exchange ideas, and share their views and experiences.
The initial implementation of the Jamaica Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) Programme could not have come to fruition without the sharing of information from various organisations and agencies such as the technical assistance received from the World Customs Organisation (WCO) technical team and that of the USAID (Jamaica Pride) and the Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT), as well our Latin American partners, the Dominican Republic Customs. It was this culture of promoting knowledge-sharing that has allowed Jamaica to successfully implement its Importers AEO Programme in 2014, and to further expand in 2021 to include 34 Exporting Economic Operators.
The success of Jamaica’s AEO Programme has seen supply chain security benefits to Jamaica, such as:
• Improved process levels through the advanced risk management assessment allowing for greater process efficiency
• Accelerated and expedited Cargo Clearance, through green lane assignment and designated AEO Entry Processing Unit
• International cooperation and collaboration, as the World Customs Organisation, WCO SAFE Framework of standards is the global benchmark for which the AEO Programme is structured.
• Designated AEO Account Officer as the pint of contact with the JCA to guide and assist AEO companies.
The Jamaica Customs Agency recognises that for there to be proper use of its systems and to better facilitate and foster global and local trade there must be continued partnership with the private and public sectors. For the AEO Programme this is facilitated through the AEO Private Sector Committee, a committee that is chaired and managed by its members and is focused on improving, among other things, the AEO Programme and Supply Chain security as we continue to share and empower our trade partners and ourselves.