Under the auspices of the WCO-WACAM Project funded by Sweden, a capacity building mission was carried out from 05 to 14 March 2018 in Praia, Cape Verde. The mission objective was two-fold, and consisted of strengthening the organizational capacities of the Cape Verde Revenue Authority (CVRA) on:

• Effectively managing reform and modernization projects;
• Mapping the Customs clearance process in order to identify organizational bottlenecks and simplify overall customs processes.

The mission was delivered by WCO member experts from Brazilian Customs (Receita Federal (RFB)) who enabled the sharing of experiences and transfer of knowledge in the field of organizational development with their Cape Verdean counterparts.

The first part of the mission consisted of WCO training on project management to fifteen (15) CVRA senior and mid-level managers. The training material was developed under the framework of the WCO-WACAM Project and translated into Portuguese to more effectively support Cape Verde. The workshop focused on the project life cycle, results-based management principles and the application of project management tools on specific case studies, such as Single Window and Authorized Economic Operators.

The last three days of the mission, the WCO experts introduced the concept and methodologies of Business Process Mapping (BPM). Following the introductory sessions on BPM, participants were asked to take part in group exercises, which involved the practical mapping of selected Customs processes.

In the forthcoming months, the Cape Verde Revenue Authority will use these tools to develop its own project management methodology and to further map its import process. These efforts will enable CVRA to meet its vision of being a modern and efficient tax and customs administration recognized for the quality of its services.

For more information about this activity of about the WCO-WACAM Project, please contact M. Richard Chopra, WCO-Sweden Programme Director, Richard.Chopra@wcoomd.org.