CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Nov. 30 – The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) commended the Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Cagayan de Oro for its continued commitment to address the transboundary environmental crime happening worldwide.

In a letter to District Collector John Simon, Dechen Tsering, UNEP Regional Director and Representative for Asia and the Pacific, said they recognize the importance of international collaboration to disrupt environmental crime and advance the protection of the environment and supports cooperation between customs agencies.

The UNEP serves as a secretariat to the Green Customs Initiative (GCI) which is an informal partnership of international organizations cooperating to  facilitate the legal trade and prevent illegal trade in environmentally sensitive commodities and substances.

Tsering added that the full cooperation between the Korean government and Philippine government in this case indicates the success of such approach.

Aside from the UNEP, the World Customs Organization through its Deputy Secretary General Ricardo Treviña Chapa also congratulated the BOC on the completion of return of the South Korean waste despite the pandemic.

In a statement, District Collector John Simon said the international recognition has elevated the efforts of the bureau in the area of global anti-smuggling as world-class customs achievement.

“We are just translating our vision which is to be modernized and credible customs administration that is among world’s best,” he said.

After more than two years the BOC successfully re-exported more than 7,500 metric tons of wastes from South Korea illegally imported in Misamis Oriental in July and October 2018.

This is the biggest volume of illegal waste apprehended in the Philippines. (BOC-10)



Source: Philippines Information Agency (pia.gov.ph)