Mr. Kazunari IGARASHI is Deputy Director of the Enforcement Division, Customs and Tariff Bureau, Ministry of Finance of Japan.  He joined Customs in 1983 and experienced several frontline duties as well as international coordination tasks at both Customhouse and the Bureau.  From 2003 through 2009, he served at the WCO Secretariat as a Technical Officer and was responsible for various enforcement subjects such as commercial fraud and money laundering.  His current responsibilities at the headquarters of Japan Customs are broad and, in particular, he is continuously leading the Japan Customs’ efforts in enhancing intelligence-led Customs control on travelers through the use of advance information, i.e. API and PNR.  Mr. Igarashi is the author and proposer of the “WCO Recommendation on the Use of API and PNR for Efficient and Effective Customs Control” which was unanimously adopted at the WCO Council Sessions in 2012 and now regarded as an essential instrument of the WCO for the promotion of the use of API and PNR among the Customs administrations in line with the internationally agreed technical standards.