The WCO-Japan Career Development Programme for 2017/2018 ended with a ceremony at which the ten Professional Associates were awarded certificates on their successful completion of the Programme. This ceremony was preceded by a reporting session during which the Professional Associates presented their research findings to the Secretary General and the management team of the WCO, as one of their achievements during their service at the WCO Secretariat in Brussels.
The Career Development Programme was launched in 2009 by the WCO, in cooperation with Japan Customs. It provides an opportunity for selected candidates to undertake work at the WCO Secretariat and aims at enabling the nominated specialists to obtain knowledge, skills and international work experience; developing and enhancing networks among WCO Members and the Secretariat; enhancing the research activities of the WCO in order to support and assist the Secretariat in its mission and tasks; and developing a pool of highly competent officials with expertise in WCO Member administrations.
Within the framework of the 2017/2018 Programme which commenced in September 2017, ten Customs officials - from Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Cuba, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, Sudan, Thailand, and Timor-Leste - worked at the WCO Secretariat on a number of projects and activities. The involvement of these Professional Associates has enabled WCO Members to enhance their communication with the Secretariat and also served to add to the diversity of the Secretariat’s staff.
Upon completion of the Programme, WCO Deputy Secretary General Ricardo Treviño congratulated the Professional Associates for successful completion of the Programme. He highlighted the fact that the Programme was mutually beneficial both for the Associates and for the WCO: Professional Associates learned from customs matters experts working at the WCO and at the same time they invested their knowledge and their efforts in helping the WCO to accomplish its mission and goals. He also advised the Professional Associates to stay in touch with the Secretariat after their return to their Administrations and thus reinforce the global Customs network.