The Confederation of Customs Brokers of the Mexican Republic (CAAAREM)  and the Confederation of Industrial Chambers (Concamin) signed an agreement that seeks to mark a turning point in strengthening legality in customs.

“This agreement is the first step of many we must take,” said Mauricio Battaglia, president of the Concamin Commission for the Defense of Legality, at the 85th National Congress of Customs Agents of CAAAREM. His call was direct: to close the gap between industry, government, and customs agents to stop the smuggling and undervaluation that, for years, have eroded the country’s productive base.

The agreement includes commitments to training , information exchange, and compliance strategies.

“We’re not against imports, we’re against those who do so illegally,” stressed Guillermo Sánchez Chao, a lawyer specializing in international trade and an advisor on the case.

For his part, CAAAREM president Miguel Cos Nesbitt acknowledged that reaching this agreement took months of work, meetings, and awkward moments.

“I wasn’t elected to sit back,” he said, recalling the meetings with leaders from other sectors who questioned the actions of some members of the customs union. “It’s up to us to clean up the chain, because everyone’s reputation is at stake,” he emphasized.

The panel, moderated by customs broker Julio Escalante Bourillón, concluded with a clear message: this alliance doesn’t end with a signature; it only begins with one.

Some of the agreements of the signed agreement are:

• Joint training and updating.

• Establishment of communication and monitoring channels.

• Exchange of technical and statistical information.

• Joint diagnosis of the impact of illicit trade.

• Development of best practices and compliance programs .

• Prevention of undervaluation and malpractice.

• Boosting the inter-institutional observatory.

• Promotion of legal and fair trade.

• Institutional strengthening of the customs system.

• Permanent monitoring and common work agenda.

The challenge is to put the agreement into practice, recruit more agencies, and demonstrate with facts that legal trade does have defenders and that they are organized.

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