From 3 to 5 July Mali Customs organized, with the support of WCO experts, a new tailor-made workshop dedicated to the commitment of Malian private sector actors in the anti-corruption and integrity promotion approach defined in the strategic plan of the General Directorate of Customs (DGD) of Mali and in the Project Information Document (PID) for Mali Customs, which was drafted in 2020 following the scoping phase of the WCO A-CIP Programme.
Driven by the firm desire to continue to strengthen mutual trust and cooperation between economic operators and customs, the General Directorate of Customs (DGD) of Mali invited, for this activity, a group of about forty participants composed of senior executives customs and representatives of the private sector and employers, with the aim of intensifying relations, continuing the dialogue between the various actors on the basis of active listening, a clear and sincere expression of expectations, factual identification of strengths and areas for improvement, and this by applying a pragmatic method of seeking efficient and shared solutions.
Thus, with the conviction that no organization can succeed alone in meeting the challenges of the fight against corruption and the promotion of integrity, the A-CIP Programme team of the Customs of Mali, with the support of experts from the WCO's Anti-Corruption and Integrity Promotion Programme (A-CIP) created the conditions for a constructive exchange based on key sequences relating in particular to the conclusions of the analysis of the Customs Integrity Perception Survey (CIPS) of Mali, the identification of the real expectations of each of the actors and the development of a common action plan.
Facilitated in collaboration with the management of the WCO Regional Capacity Building Office for West and Central Africa, the workshop also enabled all participants to become aware of the importance of communicating regularly with all stakeholders to assess progress against commitments made and maintain a high level of engagement. More specifically, the activity made it possible to appropriate good practices for developing and leading an operational action plan, common and aligned with the strategy of the customs administration and with that of the organizations representing the private sector in Mali.
The contributions and exchanges between customs executives and representatives of the private sector have highlighted the importance of making ambitious and realistic commitments and of establishing a shared calendar of actions in order to organize joint discussion times on a bilateral and multilateral basis, respecting the availability of each of the actors.
As the DG of Customs of Mali pointed out in his closing speech, "Talking about corruption is no longer a taboo today and the dialogue between Customs and the private sector now makes it possible to act effectively against this scourge" .
At the end of the three-day workshop dedicated to stakeholder engagement, the Malian Customs A-CIP programme group and experts from the WCO A-CIP Programme continued the activities by implementing a specific two-day workshop aimed at building the capacity of the Mali Customs Training and Development Center in terms of educational content on the fight against corruption and the promotion of integrity.
The WCO A-CIP Programme currently supports over 20 WCO Member administrations, with funding from Norad and Canada. For more information, please contact: capacity.building@wcoomd.org.