At the request of Niger’s General Directorate of Customs and using funding it provided, the World Customs Organization (WCO) conducted a Train-the-Trainer Workshop on competency-based training techniques in Niamey (Niger) from 25 March to 1 April 2019.

The purpose of this activity, organized as part of the WCO-WACAM Project for the modernization of Human Resource Management (HRM), was to equip Niger Customs with a pool of trainers capable of acting as competency developers and conducting basic and ongoing Customs training activities in the technical and management fields.

During this Workshop the 20 participants, eight of whom were women, had the opportunity to access the WCO’s new, state-of-the-art, competency-based train-the-trainer material. They explored the main features of competency development, including in particular competency-based training, the training cycle, the adult learning cycle, training materials design, training techniques and how to conduct training, as well as modern methods of training evaluation.

The Workshop supported an interactive and participatory approach; thus, all participants had the opportunity to apply new competencies through group exercises, simulations and role-play.

The 20 participants will now be called upon by their Administration to develop and deliver the ECOWAS region’s new regional basic Customs training programme and participate in ongoing training activities. Also, activities aimed at evaluating the impact of this Workshop are scheduled to take place in the course of 2019.

For more information about this activity, please contact the Capacity Building Directorate at: capacity.building@wcoomd.org