Mr Mick Fleming President & CEO American Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) 4875 Eisenhower Ave.

22304-485 Alexandria, VA, USA 27 May 2011 Certificates of Origin Dear Mr Fleming, The role of chambers of commerce as issuing agencies for certificates of origin (CO) can be traced back to the 1923 Geneva Convention relating to the Simplification of Customs Formalities (Article 11), and has been reinforced with the updated Kyoto Convention. Under these Conventions, signatory governments were able to allow organizations which possess the necessary authority and offer the necessary guarantees to the State to issue certificates of origin. Thus due to the widespread network of the chamber of commerce community, in most countries, chambers of commerce were seen as these organizations allowed to issue certificates of origin. To support them in their role and responsibility in issuing this documentation, the ICC World Chambers Federation has published the International Certificate of Origin Guidelines in six languages, providing chambers with the necessary framework to deliver this service to the highest possible standard. By definition, a Certificate of Origin is an official document certifying the origin of the goods being exported. In most of Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America they are usually issued by Chambers and supervised by official government agencies. Chambers shall not outsource these functions for which they have the expertise, commercial intelligence and responsibility on a trusted independent third party basis and transparent and accountable verification process. To provide this important service, authorized Chambers have the obligation to comply with their conditions of appointment which include having a permanent Secretariat with a dedicated CO Unit/Department manned by professionally trained personnel.

Chambers which operate within a non-authorized environment also have the obligation to deliver this service through their trained Secretariat as they are the legal owner of their corporate seal/rubber stamp/logo, etc. As such, the issuance of certificates of origin shall not be outsourced. With kindest regards,

Lee Ju Song Chair ICC WCF CO Task Force

Anthony Parkes Director ICC World Chambers Federation