The AEO programme of the General Authority of Customs has registered around 47 companies

Around 47 businesses have been registered under the General Authority of Customs' (GAC) Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) initiative, which is a pillar in the GAC's relationships with both the public and private sectors. 

According to Jassim Yaqoub Al Romaihi, head of the facilitation and commitment department, operations management and risk analysis administration at the GAC, the programme, which was launched in 2019, has 39 companies in the import and export category registered to it and eight companies in the customs clearance category, with many more expected to join soon.

According to Al Romaihi, the Authorised Economic Operator Programme is a national effort aligned with the Authority's vision of "global customs commitment, facilitation, and leadership" that aims to promote trade and secure the supply chain by offering advantages to parties involved in the global trade supply chain. Especially under the Authorised Economic Operator programme, which is the foundation of this connection, the department constantly creates partnerships and channels of contact with the private sector. Additionally, collaboration and communication with the public sector are crucial. The public and private sectors are fundamental pillars within the framework of security and facilitation of the global supply chain, enabling international trade exchanges to achieve a balance.

The World Customs Organization's (WCO) Framework of Standards to Secure and ease commerce (SAFE) provides the foundation for AEO, which is accessible to all supply chain participants and aims to improve global supply chain security and ease legal commerce.

The Authority's objective of facilitating commerce and safeguarding the supply chain by bringing advantages to all parties involved is consistent with the AEO initiative in Qatar.

Al Romaihi outlined some prerequisites for businesses to participate in the programme, including the presence of a proper customs position for the previous three years, a stable financial system adhering to generally accepted accounting principles in the nation for the previous three years, the presence of a system that the General Authority of Customs will accept for the purpose of maintaining commercial records, and the presence of safety and security standards in accordance with international standards.

Al Romaihi explained the duties of the Facilitation and Commitment Department, stating that they apply WCO standards of the World Customs Organisation in this area to ensure that when businesses are accredited with facilitation programmes, their commitment and ongoing monitoring are guaranteed. 

The GAC also reported that it received 270,751 declarations in April, with the administration of Air Cargo and Private Airports claiming 236,575 completed data. While the Land Customs only processed 5,462, the Maritime Customs finished 11,923 data. In less than an hour, the GAC forwarded 23,145 statements to other government entities, releasing 99% of its data.

The leading import and export nations continued to be the USA and India, respectively. The Ministry of Environment's animal protection division ranked as the best agency in terms of release time, finishing its procedure in 1.2 hours, as the GAC logged 157 seizures in April.