From March 9 – 11, the Border Management Programme in Central Asia held a workshop in Nur-Sultan on innovative principles and methods of risk management and green channels. The workshop targeted Kazakh national experts in the fields of development and implementation of risk management strategies and measures of the State Revenue Committee of Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The workshop supported the customs administration in developing and improving their risk management system through the application of innovative methods, tools and information systems used to classify and profile customs risks. Based on their discussions and assessment of the existing system, areas were identified for improvement and recommendations were developed, in order to further modernise the risk management and green channel systems. 

The green channel system allows for simplification of customs control, which enables customs authorities to improve the flow of passengers and goods and to deal efficiently with increasing trade volumes, without reducing the effectiveness of controls and without a corresponding increase in the number of customs staff. 

The expert team from the National Customs Board of the State Revenue Service of Latvia paid special attention to the innovative principles and methods of risk management, which could be adapted to Kazakhstan’s needs. An introduction of principles on control of areas with the greatest risk enables customs authorities to improve the flow of passengers and goods, as well as dealing with increasing trade volumes without reducing the effectiveness of control.