Cusco, Dec. 7, 2004. The Andean Community became the first regional group in the world to approve a Community regulation for the control and surveillance of chemical substances used in the illegal production of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.

The provision was approved by the Andean Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in enlarged session with the Ministers of Foreign Trade during the Special Meeting of the Andean Presidential Council taking place in Cusco.

The purpose of the regulation is to give the Andean countries a stronger joint capacity of response and the possibility to optimize parameters in controlling and overseeing the import, export, and transportation of chemical substances and any other transaction at the Andean level and from third countries that involve such substances.

For purposes of effective Community control, the CAN provision incorporates a list of controlled chemical substances (Annex I) with their generic and chemical names, the CAS code, and its respective numerical codes in the NANDINA Harmonized System classification.

It also spells out the import, transit, and transfer requirements. By way of example, it stipulates that “those who import or export controlled chemical substances must show evidence of possessing the corresponding authorizations and permits, without prejudice to their fulfillment of the registration, classification, licensing and filing requirements established for those substances in each country’s national legislation.”

The Community provision stipulates that the competent administrative authorities shall keep a registry of individuals and legal entities authorized to import or export controlled chemical substances.

It further stipulates that the Andean country, before exporting such substances and through its competent authorities, shall notify the competent authority of the importing country about the said export, using the form prepared by the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) for that purpose.

Decision 505 on the Andean Cooperation Plan for the Control of Illegal Drugs and Related Offenses of June 2001 and the first Operational Plan of the Action Program for implementing that Decision, approved in November 2001 in La Paz, Bolivia, reflect the concern that exists over the control of chemical inputs at the Andean level.