The World Customs Organization (WCO) conducted a five-day National Training on Programme Global Shield (PGS) in Bangladesh from 22 to 26 April 2018 as part of its Asia Pacific Security Project (APSP). The training programme was jointly organized by the WCO and the National Board of Revenue of Bangladesh and funded by the Security Project Fund of the Government of Japan.

The primary objectives were to create awareness amongst Customs officials and other relevant government agencies of the threat posed by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and how the WCO Security Project can enhance the capacity to mitigate this threat. Seventeen Customs officials from regional offices and the capital participated in the training while agencies like Bangladesh Police, Chittagong Port Authority, Coast Guards, Bangladesh Navy and Border Guards were also represented and attended some sessions as observers and shared their experiences tackling common challenges.

In the welcome address, Mr. Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan ndc, Senior Secretary, International Resources Division and Chairman, National Board of Revenue expressed his wish that the workshop would augment the level of understanding and knowledge  of Customs officials concerning the 14 targeted precursor chemicals, how those chemicals might be used to make IEDs as well as ways to identify, manage and control their cross-border movement.

The Training covered issues like the IEDs threat, Customs role in mitigating IEDs, safety data sheets, labeling, packaging, licensing fraud, investigation techniques, risk assessment and finally practical training on different technologies used to detect and identify precursor chemicals. Two trainers from Bangladesh Customs had the opportunity to facilitate the sessions along with a WCO expert after learning about different aspects of PGS and receiving training skills in the first Train-the-Trainers Workshop in the Philippines in March 2018.

In accordance with the APSP implementation plan, WCO and the national Customs administrations in the region will continue organizing training activities to enhance capacity to mitigate the threat posed by IEDs.