- Across April and May, the six regions of the World Customs Organization (WCO) held their annual meetings, bringing together Customs administrations at the regional level to discuss cooperation, strategic priorities, and engagement with the WCO.
- Convened by the WCO Council Vice-Chairpersons, these meetings are central to the Organization’s regional approach and provide ideal forums for the WCO Secretariat to gain insight into region-specific challenges and share updates on WCO’s activities with each of the WCO regions.
- Discussions held during these meetings are timely as they pave the way to the WCO Council Sessions to be held in June, during which Heads of Customs from around the world will gather in Brussels, Belgium to discuss global cooperation achievements and challenges.
187 Members across six regions
These six meetings represent key milestones in the Organization’s annual calendar, ensuring dialogue at the regional level and providing WCO Secretary General Ian Saunders with the opportunity to engage directly with the entire Membership. By visiting each region in turn, he was able to gain a comprehensive overview of the specific challenges faced across regions ahead of the Council Sessions.
They also provided Secretary General Saunders with the opportunity to update Members on the first year of implementation of the WCO Strategic Plan 2025–2028, highlighting that concrete deliverables have already been achieved across all strategic objectives and focus areas, as well as progress made in the ongoing modernization process.
Regional highlights
Asia/Pacific (A/P) region: Held in Hong Kong,China from 17 to 20 May, the 27th Conference of the A/P Heads of Customs reviewed the progress achieved under the regional strategic plan, emphasizing the regional priorities, enforcement and capacity-building activities, and the contributions by the WCO regional entities.
East and Southern Africa (ESA) region: Formally opened by the country’s Minister for Finance and hosted in Zanzibar, Tanzania on 14 and 15 May, the ESA 32nd Governing Council focused on regional strategy implementation, visibility, and collective responses to shared challenges.
West and Central Africa region (WCA) region: Opened by the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, the 32nd Conference of the Directors General of Customs brought together Directors General from Member administrations of the WCA region in Freetown, Sierra Leone on 7 and 8 May, to discuss regional issues related to the theme of Customs’ mission of protecting society through vigilance and commitment, aligned with the 2026 WCO theme.
North of Africa, Near and Middle East (MENA) region: Held online on 5 May, the meeting discussed governance issues and how best to strengthen cooperation between Customs administrations within the region and with the WCO.
WCO Americas and the Caribbean (AMS) region: Held in Lima, Peru on 20 and 21 April, the Conference of the region’s Directors General focused its discussions on security issues and the protection role of Customs. At the margins of the Conference, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with Brazil to establish a new Regional Office for Capacity Building.
Europe region: Heads of Customs administrations of the Europe region met in Brussels at the WCO on 16 and 17 April, to discuss engagement with the private sector and security challenges faced by Customs to protect society, including their work on fragile borders, and agreed on priority areas for regional cooperation.
Next Steps
The 147th/148th Sessions of the WCO Council will be held from Thursday 25 June 2026 to Saturday 27 June in Brussels, Belgium, gathering the Heads of its 187 Member Customs Administrations to discuss achievements and challenges in global Customs cooperation.
Useful Info
- Read the op-ed by WCO Secretary General, ‘Protecting What Matters: Customs on the Frontline’, published in Tanzanian media outlets The Citizen and Daily News and in Sierra Leone based media Global Times, Politico SL, Awoko newspaper, and the Exclusive - https://shorturl.at/EIszo
- And another op-ed by the Secretary General, ‘A steady hand at the border – why Customs matters more than ever’ which was also published in media outlets of the Americas - Aduanas News and El Peruano - World Customs Organization