What is its role?

The Capacity Building Directorate is the Directorate in the World Customs Organization with responsibility for the development of Customs Services globally through the implementation of WCO Conventions, guidelines and tools.

In order to accomplish this the Directorate works closely with other areas of the Secretariat, Members, Donors, Universities, Research Centres and Service Providers from the private sector to provide development advice; plan, fund, implement, monitor and evaluate development programmes and projects; create and implement development tools; establish and manage a development and training infrastructure, provide management development; create training capacity; and manage appropriate research projects. In order to provide these services it has the following functions.

• The Columbus Programme
• Integrity development
• Leadership and Management Development Programme 
• Donor Co-ordination 

• Learning Programme – What’s in it for me? 

Management and guidance

The Directorate works under a strategy and supporting policy approved through the Policy Commission and Council and is advised through various Committees and Working Groups such as:

• The Capacity Building Committee (1st session held in September 2010)
• The Integrity Sub Committee (ISC)
• The PICARD Working Group on Professional Customs (PICARD)
• The Regional Office for Capacity Building Co-ordination Meeting
• The Regional Training Centre Co-ordination Meeting

And also collaborates closely with (among others):

• The Permanent Technical Committee
• The SAFE Working Group
• The Virtual Working Group on Gender Equality and Diversity
• The Virtual Working Group on Experts
• The Virtual Working Group on Performance Measurement  

Products and services

In order to assist the members the Directorate has responsibility for the development and maintenance of the following guidance, tools and programmes

• The Capacity Building Strategy 
• Mercator Programme 
• The Diagnostic Framework
• The Development Compendium
• The Integrity Development Guide
• The WCO E-Learning Platform
• The WCO Blended Learning Programme
• The PICARD Academic Standards for Senior and Operational Managers 
• The Fellowship Programme
• The GRIPS Programme

• The Career Development Programme 

And provides the following services

• Strategic development consultancy
• Strategic planning development
• Development programming
• Project development
• Business case development
• Management development services (Under development)
• Train the Trainers
• NII Procurement Support
• IT procurement Support (Under development)
• Specialist recruitment support (Under development)

Infrastructure

• Baku (Europe)
• Abidjan (West and Central Africa)
• Abu Dhabi (Middle East and North Africa)
• Bangkok (Asia Pacific)
• Montevideo (Americas)
• Nairobi (East and Southern Africa)

For operational delivery the Directorate has also trained and accredited a pool of diagnostic facilitators and also a pool of specialist development advisors from the Members who are used both by the Secretariat and the Regional Offices to support Members development projects.