The first WCO Regional Workshop on data analytics took place in Doha, Qatar from 2 to 6 December with the financial support from Qatar Customs to improve data analytics capabilities of Customs Administrations from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region and discuss data analytics as an extremely powerful tool for improving the way Customs Administrations are operating.  

Customs worldwide are generating a massive amount of data that is currently underused. Enhancing customs ability to perform increasingly sophisticated analytics using the available data will be crucial in all policy-making and programming.

The main objective of the Workshop is to enhance the ability of Customs to supply more efficient, more effective, more in-depth and timelier statistical products and services to better understand themselves and shape the successful Administrations of the future. 

During the Workshop, participants learned how to develop data analytics products to help satisfy the demand from policymakers – as well as policy users. Participants were also given an opportunity to explore issues related to Data Visualisation, the use of QGIS for Mapping and some of the available Data sources.

Best practices and experiences from the MENA Members related to data access and sharing, applications and services, tools and techniques, architecture and technologies, skills and know-how were shared with Participants.

The workshop's conclusions will serve as the starting point for the formulation of Data Analytics strategy for the MENA Region.