WHAT IS BASC /
History

BASC was created in 1996, initially as an anti-smuggling alliance. Since that time BASC has expanded its vision and dimension into a business alliance whose mission is to secure and facilitate international trade by the establishment and administration of global security standards and procedures applied to the supply chain in cooperation with governments, companies and authorities around the world.

BASC has established itself as a global model for cooperation programs thanks to the successful partnership of the private sector with customs, governments, and international organizations that promote secure processes and control measures.

This cooperation is based primarily on the regular exchange of experiences, information and training that has permitted the parties to increase their knowledge and perfect their practices in order to keep companies free of illicit activities while at the same time facilitating their customs procedures.

The companies that are part of BASC are periodically audited and warrant that their products and services are produced and delivered under strict security controls and monitored at every step of the transportation process, using a range of security systems and processes.

BASC membership emphasizes a company’s commitment to expand control of its business environment and therefore control those factors that affect the economic, fiscal and commercial interests of a country.

BASC was created in 1996 when a North American company, importing through the port of San Diego, California, submitted a proposal to the U.S. Customs Service, that would implement supply chain security procedures to reduce the risk of legitimate cargo being used by illegal organizations for narcotics trade, cargo theft and contaminated cargo. The proposal also sought to complement and strengthen the U.S. Customs Service’s Carrier Initiative Program (CIP) and Land Border Carrier Initiative Program (LBCIP), in order to modify the mentality of production companies towards implementing preventive measures in place of repressive measure.

BASC 1996 - 2010

Evolution and Growth

Graphic 1: BASC annual performance from 1996 to 2010. These numbers include principal certificated companies and extensions, and companies in the process inside the chapters.

Graphic 2: Percentage quantity of certificated companies by countries.

The year 2003 was a major milestone in the growth and recognition of BASC around the world, marked by trends in international trade, the challenges of globalization and at the same time, the new security regulations implemented by the U.S. government and entities such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the World Customs Organization (WCO).

Considering this growth and the objective of creating an international entity that would provide oversight the functioning and credibility of the program at the international level, the World BASC Organization (WBO) was legally constituted in 2002 in the state of Delaware (USA). WBO is a non-profit organization whose mission is to secure and facilitate international trade by the establishment and administration of global security standards and procedures applied to the supply chain in association with customs administrations and government authorities.

BASC has evolved towards securing the integrity of the supply chain and promoting mechanisms to integrate companies, governments, customs services and international organizations.

The process of expansion of BASC has been steady throughout the years as illustrated in the graph.