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08 September 2010

About SACU

SACU Institutions

SACU Institutions are contained in Article 7 of the 2002 SACU Agreement and include the SACU Council of Ministers, the Secretariat, the Commission, National Bodies, a Tariff Board, Technical Liaison Committees and a Tribunal.

SACU Council of Ministers

The SACU Council of Ministers is the supreme policy and decision making body on all SACU matters. It consists of at least one Minister from the Ministry of Finance or Ministry of Trade of each Member State and is responsible for the overall policy direction and functioning of SACU Institutions, including the formulation of policy mandates, procedures and guidelines for these Institutions. Amongst others, the Council shall appoint an Executive Secretary of SACU, shall appoint the members of the SACU Tariff Board, and approve the Budget of the Secretariat, the Tariff Board and the Tribunal.

The Council has to oversee the implementation of the policies of SACU and approves customs tariffs, rebates, refunds or drawbacks and trade related remedies, upon recommendation from the Tariff Board. The Council also has the authority to create additional Technical Liaison Committees and other additional Institutions and to determine and alter their terms of reference. The Chair of the Council is held in turn by each Member State for a period of twelve months in the order to be decided by the Council.

Customs Union Commission

The Commission consists of senior officials at the level of Permanent Secretaries, Directors-General, Principal Secretaries or other officials of equivalent rank, from each Member State and shall be responsible to and report to the Council. The Commission is responsible for the implementation of the SACU Agreement and the decisions of the Council.

The Commission is also responsible for overseeing the management of the Common Revenue Pool in accordance with the policy guidelines decided by the Council. It also supervises the work of the Secretariat.

Secretariat

The Secretariat is one of the SACU permanent Institutions. It has its headquarters in Windhoek, Namibia and is headed by an Executive Secretary who is a citizen of a SACU Member State. It is responsible for the day-to-day administration of SACU. The Secretariat further has to coordinate and monitor the implementation of all decisions of the Council and the Commission. It also arranges meetings, disseminates information and keeps minutes of meetings of the SACU Institutions. In addition, the Secretariat must assist in the harmonization of national policies and strategies of Member States in so far as they relate to SACU. The Secretariat is also responsible for keeping a record of all transactions into and out of the Common Revenue Pool and coordinates and assists in the negotiation of trade agreements with third parties. The Secretariat is the depositary of all records of SACU.

Tariff Board

The Tariff Board is an independent Institution consisting of experts drawn from Member States. The Tariff Board is responsible for making recommendations to the Council on the level and changes of customs, anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard duties on goods imported from outside the Common Customs Area, and rebates, refunds, or duty drawbacks based on the directives given to it by the Council as provided for in Article 8 of the SACU Agreement.

The terms of reference, policy mandates, procedures and regulations of the Tariff Board is determined by the Council in accordance with Article 8 of the SACU Agreement.

National Bodies

National Bodies are Member States specialised independent and dedicated entities entrusted with the receiving requests for tariff changes and other related SACU issues. The National Bodies are to carry out preliminary investigations and recommend any tariff changes necessary to the Tariff Board.

National Bodies are in the process of being developed. Common procedures and capacity is being developed to ensure efficient and transparent functioning of the National Bodies.

Tribunal

Although not yet established, (but the process has been started) the SACU Agreement does make provision for an ad hoc Tribunaly. The Tribunal will be assisted by the Secretariat in its work and it will be composed of three members except as otherwise determined by Council. Decisions will be made by a majority vote.

It will adjudicate on any issue concerning the application or interpretation of the SACU Agreement 2002 or any dispute arising there under at the request of the Council. Its determinations will be final and binding. The Tribunal will also, at the request of the Council, consider any issue and furnish the Council with its recommendations.

In the event of any dispute or difference arising between Member States in relation to or arising out of the SACU Agreement, including its interpretation, the parties shall in the first instance meet and consult in an attempt to settle such dispute or difference before referring the matter to the Tribunal.

Technical Liaison Committees

There are five Technical Liaison Committees, which have to assist and advise the Commission in its work. They include the following:

The Terms of Reference of these Committees are determined by the Council. They are specialised Committees, covering specific sectors, and advise the Commission in its work.