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The 13th South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Customs Subgroup Meeting, held on 11–12 August in Kathmandu, Nepal, brought together senior customs officials of the SASEC countries to discuss progress of subregional initiatives and country projects for trade and transport facilitation.

Mr. Dinesh Kumar Ghimire, Secretary for Revenue, Nepal Ministry of Finance, delivered the keynote address while Mr. Thiam Hee Ng, Regional Head (RCI), South Asia Department, Asian Development Bank (ADB), gave the opening remarks. Mr. Mahesh Bhattarai, Director General, Nepal Department of Customs, gave the welcome remarks and chaired the meeting.

The meeting was followed by a Learning Event on Transforming Customs Operations Using New and Innovative Technologies, which included discussions on using artificial intelligence, blockchain, and machine learning to help modernize customs procedures among SASEC countries. The learning event, held on 13 August, was moderated by Ms. Kanya S. Sasradipoera, Principal Regional Cooperation Specialist, ADB.