With the support from the Customs Cooperation Fund - China, Hong Kong Customs, and the A- CIP Programme funded by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), the WCO conducted a Middle Management Development (MMD) train-the-trainer workshop for 13 middle managers at the WCO Regional Training Center (RTC) in Hong Kong, from 12th to 22nd June 2023. The middle managers were drawn from five Members of the WCO – Asia Pacific (AP) Region:  Cambodia, Iran, Nepal, Philippines, and Hong Kong, and a representative from the ROCB AP, Thailand. The objective of the workshop was to nurture prospective trainers who are expected to support the implementation of the MMD training programme at national and regional levels. The workshop comprised presentations by the middle managers, sharing of experiences, deep personal reflection, group exercises, and discussions on the various modern leadership and management concepts and theories.

The MMD is the third core element of the WCO Leadership and Management Development (LMD) Programme. It aims to support middle managers of Customs administrations in expanding their knowledge and understanding of modern management by equipping them with the fundamental skills necessary to better understand and manage themselves, their teams, stakeholders and the organizational strategy and culture daily. 

During the workshop’s opening, Mr. Hong Yin Hubert, the Staff Officer of Training and Development, RTC Hong Kong, warmly welcomed the participants to Hong Kong and expressed his appreciation to the WCO and CCF China.  Mr. Hong said that, with WCO’s professional design and planning of training events, he was confident the workshop would be highly productive with fruitful exchange and sharing of best practices in Customs management. Mr. Vincent Njebi Kwalar, who represented the WCO, acknowledged the enormous support of the sponsors, the ROCB AP region, the Hong Kong Customs / RTC Hong Kong, and the respective Administrations in ensuring that the workshop is accomplished. He explained the objective of the MMD ToT Workshop and said that the participants were expected to acquire the requisite skills and techniques to subsequently support the implementation of the MMD training programme at national and regional levels. Mr. Kwalar highlighted that this approach was in line with the WCO’s theme on knowledge sharing as a means of increasing professional pride in the young generation.

The workshop’s closing was officiated by Mr. Eddie Lai, the Senior Staff Officer of Training and Development Hong Kong Customs, who congratulated the participants and facilitators for successfully completing the workshop and reiterated that Hong Kong Customs was fully committed to supporting the activities of the WCO in the AP region. The participants also shared insights on the impact of the MMD training Programme and appreciated the knowledge and techniques acquired.

For more information on the WCO Leadership and Management Development Programme, please contact capacity.building@wcoomd.org.