WCO Secretary General attends opening of the WCO Regional Training Centre in Skopje, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

02 October 2009

WCO Secretary General attends opening of the WCO Regional Training Centre in Skopje, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

28 to 29 September 2009

Report

At the invitation of Mr. Vanco Kargov, Director General of Customs in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the WCO Secretary General, Kunio Mikuriya, and the Vice Chair for the WCO Europe region, Alain Bellot – who is also Director General of Luxembourg’s Customs Administration – visited Skopje from 28 to 29 September 2009 on the occasion of the formal opening of the WCO Regional Training Centre.

After the formal opening of the RTC which was also attended by Mr. Kekenovski, Dean of the Faculty of Economics at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Mr. Mikuriya gave a special lecture on "Customs in the 21st Century" at the Faculty of Economics before an audience consisting of Customs and other governmental representatives, the business community, the diplomatic circle, the academic community, students and the media.

The Secretary General stated that, " Steady progress in the country’s Customs modernization programme had been recognized by both the business and international community, and had resulted in the WCO Europe region supporting the establishment of an RTC in Skopje . The country’s recent accession to the WCO revised Kyoto Convention is concrete proof of the Customs Administration’s progress and sent a positive message to the business community. I also appreciate the Faculty of Economics’ cooperation under the WCO PICARD Programme – a partnership between Customs and universities – which facilitated the establishment of the RTC”.

Mr. Mikuriya and Mr. Bellot met Minister of Finance, Zoran Stavreski, where they discussed further ways to reform Customs, including the integrity aspect. They were also received by Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski. The Prime Minister was satisfied with the progress in Customs reform which was in line with WCO standards and promised his full support for the RTC as he felt that quality human resources are key to the successful modernization of Customs and to promote regional cooperation.

Mr. Kargov later showed Mr. Mikuriya and Mr. Bellot the border crossing at Tabanovce, where Customs officers from Serbia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia work in close cooperation. They were also able to see the advanced IT software with single window functions in use and mobile units equipped with inspection technologies.