KARACHI: Additional Director, Directorate General of Reforms and Automation (Customs) Ihsan Ali Shah has said that the World Customs Organization (WCO) has called up on all members to further promote efforts and initiatives in a sector that is becoming key element in Customs modernization process i.e. Collecting and Analyzing data. It is in this context, that the year 2017 has been dedicated by WCO to promoting data analysis under the slogan “Data Analysis for Effective Border Management.”
The data analysis acquires meticulous precision while making informed decisions, especially when the Customs Administrations are faced by sophisticated and evolving challenges every day. Data analysis thus can greatly support core Customs’ objectives of not only revenue collection but also border security, collection of trade statistics and boosting trade facilitation at the same time. The Data Analysis, however, can be well supported when there is harmonization of data which can be achieved through WCO Data Model. It would not only contribute to improvement in data collection but also enable smooth sharing of data between government and cross border agencies. Besides it will provide the platform for exchange of AEI (Advance Electronic Information) and Advance Cargo Declaration etc. Therefore adaption of WeBOC to WCO Data Model would be an important development for customs clearance process. It may be high time to learn about it.
The Data Model prescribed by WCO (World Customs Organization) is a collection of international standards on data and information required by government agencies in relation to regulation of cross-border trade. This collection has been developed by WCO after examination of all relevant international instruments and guidelines, along with national and industry practice, with the objective of achieving a consensus on the manner in which data will be used in applying regulatory controls in global trade. The Data Model contains data elements which are logically grouped into units of meaningful information, called “information models”. These information models serve as reusable building blocks with which one can build electronic document and data exchange templates.
Currently, there are at least three international “data models” which organize data elements and standardize how the data elements relate to one another. The first and the oldest is United Nations (UN) Trade Data Element Directory (TDED) which is closely linked to paper-based forms and contains information about location of each data element on a standard paper layout. Nonetheless, it continues to remain relevant even in the electronic environment as it provides basis for UN Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) for Administration. Second is UN/EDIFACT which comprises a set of internationally agreed standards, directories and guidelines for the electronic interchange of structured data, and in particular, that related to trade in goods and services between independent, computerized information systems. TDED helps construct UN/EDIFACT components which are commonly used in Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). Thirdly, the Core Components Library (CCL) could be said to be a further development on TDED. The WCO Data Model draws heavily from the aforesaid standards. First, it is by and large cross-referenced to TDED. Second, the WCO Data Model is also expressed through a standard UN/EDIFACT GOVCBR (Government Cross-Border Regulatory) message. Third, the modeling principles of WCO Data Model are largely similar to CCL, as both are based on Core Component Technical Specifications
