During the workshop, participants exchanged professional experience in training and qualification enhancement of customs officers at training institutions in Central Asia and the European Union on the example of Latvia. They also shared ideas in identifying potential cooperation areas of customs personnel’s training with BOMCA assistance.

Aivars Krastins, Director of International Business and Customs Institute of the Riga Technical University, presented “Professional standards for customs officers” document approved by the World Customs Organisation.

Participants of the workshop visited the Higher Military Customs Institute’s faculty of re-training and professional development under the State Customs Committee of Uzbekistan to learn its best practices.

Within BOMCA it is planned to establish institutional partnerships between Central Asia and the European Union’s border management training institutions to enhance the development of regional ‘Centres of Excellence’, i.e. institutions capable of taking a lead role in cascading down training in thematic areas to national trainers. The meeting organised in Tashkent will hopefully be valuable for further establishment and further work of such a Forum/Consortia of Training Centres.

The overall objectives of BOMCA are to help increase security in the Central Asian region, to contribute toward the facilitation of legitimate trade and transit, and to reduce the illicit movement of goods and people.

The EU-UNDP BOMCA assistance programme is funded by the European Union and implemented by UNDP with ICMPD as an implementing partner.