• The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the World Customs Organization (WCO) have formally finalized a 12-month no-cost extension for the Global Trade Facilitation Programme Phase II (GTFP-II).
• This formal amendment to the Contribution Agreement extends the Programme’s operational runway until December 2028, ensuring that critical capacity-building interventions can be fully realized across the beneficiaries.
• This extension represents a mutual commitment to maximizing the sustainability of trade facilitation interventions, strengthening of Customs processes and procedures, enhancing the protection of society and ensuring long-term impact across global supply chains.

In a strong testament to its ongoing impact and the resilience of its partnership network, the additional 12 months will focus on a dual-track strategy to consolidate existing gains while strategically scaling the Programme's footprint:

• Finalizing Current Engagements: Providing uninterrupted technical assistance and capacity building to ensure existing beneficiaries—including Colombia, El Salvador, Kenya, Moldova, Morocco, Peru, Tunisia, and Uzbekistan—fully finalize, institutionalize, and sustain their ongoing Customs reforms. 

• Welcoming New Beneficiaries: Paving the way for new eligible countries to join the GTFP-II framework, allowing them to align their Customs operations with international standards, improve border management, and foster robust public-private partnerships. 

Sustained Results

Since its launch on February 22, 2024, the GTFP-II has delivered significant, measurable results across its eight beneficiaries including:

Institutional & Operational Progress: Successfully implemented five critical trade facilitation measures and adopted comprehensive Gender Mainstreaming Action Plans.

Capacity Building at Scale: Delivered specialized technical training to over 700 Customs officials, building upon the success of the first phase where 3,389 officials completed core training and e-learning modules.

Strategic Global Frameworks: Pioneered and supported the development of the new WCO Green Customs Assessment Framework.

Expanded Expert Pool: Accredited four new global experts in Time Release Study (TRS), Risk Management, Authorized Economic Operators (AEO), and Data Analytics, alongside nine newly recognized Spanish-speaking experts specialized in Gender Equality and Diversity.

Enhanced Connectivity & Digitalization: Fostered peer-to-peer learning and provided critical technical recommendations to optimize Customs digitalization, Coordinated Border Management (CBM), and data exchange among national and sub-regional stakeholders.

Strengthening institutional capacity

These concerted efforts have translated directly into measurable global performance gains. Notably, Uzbekistan’s OECD Trade Facilitation Indicator score surged by 25%, while Moldova recorded a strong 6% improvement. Through these achievements, GTFP-II continues to strengthen the institutional capacity of beneficiary Customs Administrations, supporting sustainable trade facilitation reforms and long-term economic development.

The partnership between SECO and the WCO demonstrates the benefits of international collaboration and cooperation in strengthening capacity of Customs administrations to better serve and protect society and facilitate the flow of legitimate trade.