From 26th to 27th April 2017, following a specific request by the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, a WCO technical assistance mission was held in Khmelnitsky to assess the current situation of the WCO Regional Training Centre (RTC).  The Ukrainian RTC was transferred to Khmelnitsky in connection with the reorganization carried out in Ukraine in 2016. It is now housed within the premises of the Department for Specialized Training and Canine Service of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, already recognized as WCO Regional Dog Training Centre (RDTC). Khmelnitsky Training Centre is thus the latest and 26th member of the RTC network.

The objectives of the mission included an assessment of the current situation of the RTC in Khmelnitsky, including its role, the principles for its governance, and its application of best practices collected from other RTCs.

The meeting was officially opened by Mr. Andrii Voitseshchuk, the RTC-RDTC Director. He and his staff engaged in intensive discussions with the expert from the WCO Secretariat about the role and functions of Regional Training Centres, including, inter alia, their status, the status and size of the RTC team, Strategic Planning, Financial arrangements, National contact points, Website and visibility, Effective regional training activities and Staff training opportunities.

Participants were highly appreciative of this two-day workshop, characterizing it as being extremely productive and beneficial to the administration, in that the activities enabled them to define the pivotal roles of RTCs in designing, managing, delivering and monitoring WCO Capacity Building activities for its Members, in close cooperation with the WCO Secretariat and the WCO Regional Office for Capacity Building (ROCB).