Acting CEO of Fiji Revenue and Customs Authority, Visvanath Dass says border security is one of the main concerns for the region.
Dass says the sale of counterfeit goods and medicines has become an important profit machine for the Asian Crime Syndicates.
He says according to the UN, contraband markets in the Asia Pacific Region are valued at about $90 billion.
He says these are broken down into four categories which include human trafficking, smuggling of migrants, illicit drugs especially heroin and methamphetamine, resources and pollution crime and counterfeit goods and fraudulent medicines.
Dass says the fake goods pose serious risk to unsuspecting consumers and they are often of poor quality and do not undergo proper safety testing.
He says the main issue in customs is integrity.
Attorney General and Minister for Economy, Aiyaz Sayed‑Khaiyum says Fiji has the commitment to ensure that customs agencies not just in the region but globally work together to be able to ensure that we have integrity within our system.
He reminded FRCA the great responsibility that they have.
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