In the framework of the WCO Securité Par Collaboration (SPC ++) project, a WCO Research Unit official visited the Central African Republic to conduct a field analysis of the border areas in the northwestern part of the country.
The SPC ++ project was inspired by a project proposal first presented by Nigerian Customs during the 21st Regional Conference of Directors General of the West and Central Africa Region in April 2016. Five countries were selected for analysis and inclusion in the final reporting outcomes: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria and the Central African Republic. The project aims to equip these Administrations with the technical resources necessary to operate along fragile borderlands by embedding a Customs, trade and taxation dimension into the states’ responses to insecurity at the border.
The WCO official conducted interviews with Customs officers and local merchants at markets throughout the western and northern part of the country, and in Bangui. Travelling with the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission (MINUSCA), and supported by the Director General Mr. Frédéric Theodore Inamo, the official analyzed capacity at Customs border posts and the impact of violence on trade. The WCO also lent its support by delivering a presentation on performance measurement, one of the key components of the Central African Republic’s modernization efforts within Customs, and one of the core competencies of the WCO’s Research Unit, having first published numerous research papers and a book on the topic in 2012.
A detailed report synthesizing the outcomes of the mission, and recommendations for improved and reinforced responses to the situation in the central and eastern part of the country, was presented to the Director General of the Central African Republic’s Administration. The outcomes from the mission will be incorporated into the overall results of the SPC++ project. For more information on this project, please contact the WCO Research Unit at research@wcoomd.org.