“Foreign Trade Innovations in 2022”

This is the theme of the two-day training seminar the Cameroon National Shippers’ Council (CNSC) organized on 24 and 25 February 2022. This hybrid seminar/webinar which was held at the Douala Maritime Museum saw in attendance foreign trade actors, Licensed Customs Brokers (LCB), and shippers, all there to be enlightened on changes brought about by the 2022 finance law, particularly with regards to customs formalities. The seminar equally offered an opportunity for them to get first-hand information on the causes of freight rate and shipping cost variations, information exclusively collected by the CNSC in the establishment of Electronic Cargo Tracking Notes (ECTN).

Key speakers at the seminar were experts of national and international repute from UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) such as Dr. Jan Hoffman, Head of the Trade and Logistics Branch, Hidenobu Takuda, Associate Economic Affairs Officer and Frida Youssef, Chief of Transport. Discussions at the seminar equally dwelled on the 2022 edition of the Harmonized System (HS 2022) and new WCO Tools. Participants were offered a free one-week trial of these tools, which allows them to compare trade agreements and customs requirements of various countries.

The seminar ended with a Q&A session which took discussions to other relevant aspects of international transport and trade. This brilliant initiative by the CNSC is just one of many activities organized by the CNSC to assist shippers and business persons with a view to promote Cameroon’s foreign trade.