Azernews.Az

By Nigar Orujova

The Azerbaijani State Customs Committee and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) signed a memorandum to extend the implementation period and to increase the budget of a project to improve the activities of the Customs Committee.

The document was signed by the Chairman of the State Customs Committee, Aydin Aliyev and the UN Resident Coordinator in Azerbaijan, Antonius Broek.

Two projects for creating a center called "Hedef" ("Purpose") in the main customs administration were unveiled during the signing ceremony.

These projects are set to be financed by UNDP together with the Azerbaijani government. Around $520,000 and $620,000 were allocated for their implementation.

Opening the Hedef Center, Broek said Azerbaijan's experience in the implementation of advanced technologies in the customs system can be adopted by other countries.

He stressed the importance of ongoing projects to be realized jointly by Customs Committee, noting their importance in terms of ensuring the safety of air transport.

"Implementation of these projects proves that Azerbaijan is successfully fulfilling its obligations to improve the security and acceleration of the import and export operations. It is noteworthy that the launch of these projects being carried out right before the European games," Broek said.

"Application of new technologies brings Azerbaijan to the most advanced position and not only makes it a fairly experienced country from this point of view, but also creates a good opportunity to study the experiences of Azerbaijan by other countries," he added.

Broek noted, this provides a good basis to support such projects by the UN, emphasizing confidence that cooperation between the UN and Azerbaijan will continue in future.

Aydin Aliyev, for his turn, thanked Broek for the support he received to press ahead these projects.

"We are very pleased that the United Nations Development Program takes serious these projects and sees the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan as a reliable partner," he said.

The purpose of the Hedef (Purpose) Center is offering the customs service of air transport on the basis of modern technologies in order to strengthen the fight against smuggling.

This center involves an installation at the international airports of Azerbaijan - in the Heydar Aliyev International Airport- and video surveillance systems to improve the quality of customs services in airports in Ganja, Lankaran and Gabala.

Information collected by these systems will be managed in a center established in the administrative building of the General Administration of Customs of air transport. The Hedef Center will improve the efficiency of customs services at border crossings by passengers and goods transported by air.

The system of automated control of goods transit through the customs territory of Azerbaijan, for its turn, will oversee the delivery of vehicles entering Azerbaijan in the import or transit regime through the border and customs checkpoints.

The State Customs Committee has been cooperating with UNDP since 1999 as part of a project called "Strengthening the potential and the creation of a data transmission network of the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan."

A single corporate network, operating in "on-line" regime, was commissioned in the customs bodies. The automated system of registration and control of the offenses was established by the customs bodies of Azerbaijan.