/ Delivering progress
Working in partnership to create
economic growth and development /
Customs & Trade Facilitation
We are an international development
company that partners with governments,
aid organisations and companies in over
100 countries. Through our expertise in
consultancy, supply chain management
and financial services, we help countries
to grow their economies, strengthen their
health systems and improve financial
management.
We take on our clients’ fundamental challenges
and make lasting change to the systems and
organisations that are vital for people’s wellbeing and prosperity.
We have worked with many of our client
countries for many decades and are
a stakeholder in their growth and
development. We work side by side
with all our clients, building trust,
commitment and skills to ensure
change is owned and managed, and
progress sustained. We bring an
agile and resourceful approach to
complex development issues.
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Contents /
Achieving sustainable change
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Providing the foundation for economic growth
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Stimulating international trade
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Delivering holistic practical solutions
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Crown Agents worldwide
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Customs &
Trade Facilitation
Crown Agents is an international
development company and a
recognised leader in the provision
of technical expertise, advice and
training in support of public sector
modernisation.
An authority in the field of capacity
strengthening, we work in partnership with
our clients to achieve durable systemic
change. This includes improving the
ability of trade and customs authorities to
support development, inward investment,
economic growth and international trade.
Working with clients to
achieve sustainable change /
Our clients’ requirements are all different and each
project presents its own unique challenges; we
therefore work side by side with them to design and
implement innovative solutions, tailored to their
specific needs.
Adopting this partnership approach achieves
knowledge and skills that strengthen our client’s
the best result as it combines our international
existing capacity and achieve integrated, lasting
experience and expertise with our client’s local
results.
knowledge. It is through this close collaboration,
from inception to delivery, that we transfer
Providing the foundation for
economic growth /
Our expertise supports public administrations
worldwide to help broaden the base of national
economic growth. Our ability to evaluate the impact
regulatory authorities have on commerce and provide
relevant solutions is key to our success.
Working to internationally recognised standards
business, stimulating trade, inward investment,
(e.g. UN, WCO, WTO), we help strengthen the capacity
and private sector led growth, whilst improving
of public administrations to modernise and to
regulatory compliance.
work with the private sector to create a mutually
supportive commercial environment. We thereby
enhance a country’s reputation as a place to do
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Stimulating international
trade /
In the modern globalised economy efficient market
access is crucial to a country’s prosperity. This puts
a premium upon the effectiveness with which public
authorities manage the cross-border movement of
goods.
We work alongside public authorities to redesign
meeting international and regional
processes and procedures to enable effective
standards
regulatory intervention and enforcement, whilst
We understand the importance of internationally
encouraging legitimate trade to flourish.
recognised standards in the development and
integration of global economic activity and help
Moving goods more easily
our clients introduce international best practice.
We support our clients to improve the ease with
For businesses, common standards lead to better
which business is done. We evaluate how official
access to world markets, while the benefits to
procedures and processes impact on commercial
public authorities arise when they co-operate with
activity and develop appropriate ways to facilitate
their counterparts abroad in the management and
the movements of goods across borders. Working
control of resultant trade flow.
with national customs and trade authorities,
we help to streamline, simplify, integrate and
increasing transparency and integrity
modernise processes and procedures.
We assist clients who wish to create or further
develop a principles based national policy-
We can help to:
making framework. Where there is political
• lower transaction costs
will and sustained commitment on the part of
• reduce transit and dwell times for goods
client governments, we provide support for the
• improve access to international markets
progressive transformation of the administrative
• co-ordinate border management
ethos within public bodies, drawing on international
standards such as the WCO’s ‘Arusha Declaration’.
enhancing revenue and trader compliance
We help regulatory and enforcement authorities to
achieve an appropriate balance between ensuring
compliance, managing risk, raising revenue and
minimising burdens on business.
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The benefits of using Crown Agents’ customs & trade
facilitation services
Improving customs and trade processes and procedures and investing in the
development of people benefit both governments and businesses:
Benefits to
GOVERNMENT
increased inward investment leading to more jobs
REVENUE GROWTH
IMPROVED RISK MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL
COST-EFFECTIVE UTILISATION OF LIMITED PUBLIC RESOURCES
EFFECTIVE PROCESSES AND PROCEDURES
GREATER TRANSPARENCY
ATTAINMENT OF INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL STANDARDS
ENHANCED STAFF CAPACITY
INCREASED TRADER COMPLIANCE
BUSINESS
faster customs clearance and goods release
increased trader confidence and positive sentiment
fewer interventions in international supply chains
efficiency gains from the automation of procedures
improved supply chain visibility and predictability
business friendly processes
reduced transaction costs
higher service levels
improved process transparency and integrity
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Delivering holistic practical
solutions /
Crown Agents’ customs & trade facilitation
consultancy has an impressive track record working
in partnership with public administrations in the
delivery of workable, practical solutions for the
enhancement of national economic competitiveness
and public revenue.
We help public authorities to make effective use
development and management of secure supply
of modern techniques, processes and procedures
chain and ‘trusted trader’ programmes such as
to improve control and ensure compliance.
‘Authorised Economic Operator (AEO)’.
This contributes to economic development by
improving trade flows and cultivating foreign direct
We provide consultancy services in design,
investment.
implementation and evaluation of: programmes.
processes & procedures, IT and scanning solutions
Our many years of experience in the design and
and risk management systems.
implementation of various aspects of customs
modernisation and trade facilitation programmes
border management
means that we plan and manage projects that
How effectively governments manage national
deliver results.
borders has a direct impact on a country’s
attractiveness to businesses and visitors.
We provide the full range of customs and
Compliance with national and sector specific
international trade related consultancy and support
regulations can be unnecessarily complicated due
services including:
to the range of agencies involved and the varying
requirements with which parties must cope.
international supply chain security
Today’s less predictable international security
We provide support to governments in evaluating
environment presents governments with the
the effectiveness of border arrangements (through,
challenge of reconciling the objectives of improving
for example, regulatory impact assessments)
cross-border security and control, whilst facilitating
and in redesigning processes and procedures to
trade, encouraging inward investment and
optimise controls to secure borders and facilitate
increasing public revenues.
legitimate traffic. This may include for example
‘one-stop border post (OSBP), co-ordinated border
Working to the WCO’s internationally agreed ‘SAFE
Framework of Standards to Secure and Facilitate
Global Trade’ we support governments in the
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management and / or ‘Single Window’ approaches.
Our expertise in both consultancy and IT software
We have extensive experience of managing
applications supports clients in any modernisation
programmes preparing countries for accession
initiative, whatever the existing border
to regional economic groupings. In collaboration
management arrangements.
with the governmental bodies concerned, we can
assist in all areas, from designing and revising
regional trade development
the legislative, policy and institutional framework
Closer regional economic co-operation
(including the introduction of internationally agreed
arrangements between countries that enable
standards and best practice) to consultancy on
trade to flow more freely and reduce trade barriers
the development of particular customs and trade
are recognised by the WTO as supportive of the
related processes and procedures.
multilateral trading system.
institutional change
The most successful institutionalised regional trade
Any initiative or project invariably involves ‘change’.
co-operation arrangements - customs union, free
We provide specialist support at each and every
trade areas, special economic zones, and transport
stage of a transformation process brought about by
and trade corridors - contribute to the economic
a particular project, programme or initiative.
and social development of the countries involved
by expanding the scope for competition and trade
We work with clients to design what form a
creation.
particular initiative should take and ensure its aims
are successfully and sustainably achieved.
This is achieved through freeing up the crossborder movement of goods, people and capital, and
We provide the essential ‘soft skills’ support
the provision of services.
necessary to embed the gains made from the
adoption of new legislation, procedures, standards,
However no regional trade arrangement comes
processes, techniques and best practice. This
with a guarantee of success - design and
includes: capacity building, training, mentoring,
implementation matter. This is where Crown Agents
personal development, business process
can provide support.
re-engineering and change management.
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Our approach ensures that our clients’ personnel
Therefore we work closely with clients wishing to
are fully equipped with the relevant knowledge
bring about change to identify needs and agree
and expertise to perform their operational and
focus areas.
management roles effectively. We also support
the creation of HR structures and policies to
Based on the findings of such analyses
sustain the capacity developed.
we support clients in the development of
appropriate implementation strategies, whilst
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We understand that moving away from the staus
being careful to minimise and mitigate the
quo and the familiar can be unsettling and
potential for adverse impact, thereby ensuring
generates its own particular set of challenges.
sustained success.
Crown Agents worldwide /
Crown Agents has a long history of working
with governments around the globe to develop
professionalism, good practice and integrity in
national public administrations. We have an enviable
reputation for integrity, commitment and quality
of service in the disciplines in which we operate,
especially that of customs and trade facilitation.
Because of the extent of our experience we
understand the local constraints and challenges
our clients have to work with and adapt our
approach accordingly. We have extensive
experience of working successfully with a wide
range of governments, donors, international
institutions, and trade associations, providing our
range of professional support services - through
our dedicated network of country and project
offices - in more than 100 countries.
For further information please contact:
Customs & Trade Facilitation
Crown Agents
St Nicholas House
St Nicholas Road
Sutton, Surrey, SM1 1EL
United Kingdom
T: +44 (0)20 8643 3311
E: [email protected]
www.crownagents.com/customs
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Visit www.crownagents.com/customs
Contact us at [email protected]
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