As part of Capacity Building, the WCO organized a Leadership and Management Development (LMD) event for 17 managers of the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) from 18-22 November in Kampala.  After three earlier LMD workshops for the URA, this follow-up event focused primarily on change management. The overall objective of the workshop was to strengthen management capacity in leading and managing the many changes Customs administrations are facing.  It is URA’s vision, and one of its values, to be effective, inclusive and agile in the rapidly changing revenue authority environment.  The workshop was funded by the Finnish government, who supports the East and Southern Africa (ESA) region on many important initiatives.

During the morning and early afternoon hours, the concept of knowing oneself and managing oneself was found to be one of the crucial elements of the modern leader-manager.   The late afternoon sessions were more focused on the specialties of change management.  Different methodologies were presented, as well as when and how to use each one of them.  Further enhancement took place in small groups, during which, four concrete URA business cases were explored from a change management perspective.  Under the coordination and inspiration of a leading expert of the URA itself, Mrs. Jessie Abonyo Jane, these sessions proved to be very helpful.

The program also included various topics on management skills such as influencing upwards, building trust, people management, strategic and personal communication and team building.
Throughout the entire week, the group worked with great enthusiasm, commitment and passion on all these new topics; not once did mobile phones or other distractions interrupt the energetic atmosphere.

At the end of the workshop the Commissioner of Customs – and Chair of the WCO Council - Mr. Dicksons Kateshumbwa, spoke about the importance of the LMD workshop.  For the URA, the WCO LMD Program, as well as its own leadership trainings which are based on it, are very important and a key element to the further growth of the organization.   With this in mind, awarding the certificates to each of the participants, was more than a routine gesture.  The participants themselves described the workshop and its unique approach as one of the most significant they had ever attended, using words such as ‘sharpened’, ‘liberated’, ‘triggered’, ‘recharged’, ‘free’, ‘enriched’ and ‘transformed’.

For more information on the WCO Leadership and Management Development Programme, please contact Capacity.Building@wcoomd.org.