World Customs Organisation West And Central African Region Holds 11th Meeting In Abuja

 World Customs Organisation West And Central African Region Holds 11th Meeting In Abuja

Human Resource Managers of the World Customs Organisation, West and Central Africa have harped on the need to build resilience and brainstorm to withstand unforeseen artificial shocks and mishaps in the future.

Speaking at the 11th training for Customs Human Resource Managers of West and Central Africa, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd) who also doubles as the Vice Chairman, of WCO West and Central African Region said, the capacity training is very apt and indisputably timely, considering the negative impacts of Covid-19 global health pandemic, wreckage caused on trans-border trade and WCA region's endemic challenges of insurgency, terrorism and poverty.

"WCA region has always been faced with multifaceted challenges from both economic and health which led to a conscious collective and positive actions initiated and coordinated by the Office of the Vice Chair WCA to shift the focus of Human Resource Management from protecting operations and infrastructure to scientific research phase for the promotion of employee wellbeing", Hameed Ali noted.

Given the issues raised above, the CGC said, employees' well-being is a springboard to personal performance, hence the need for resilience, which is one of the characteristics that help a person avoid impulsive and reactive behaviour, because it has a strong correlation with capital performance.

According to Hameed, the training would accord the WCA administrations, exposure to modern and evolving HR initiatives that would enhance a fast shift in the deployment of behavioural assessment tools to focus on experience and care as standard requirements to drive the human capital performances while sustaining the regional assistance programme on Customs matters under the framework of regional mutual administrative assistance. 

"I am confident that, WCA-Customs can take the lead in the application of HR management tools compatible with the WCO best practices and emerging technology capabilities in the continent if the Office of the Regional Capacity Building deploys the right strategy for the 

implementation of new skills through a systematic enforcement initiative."

"I would also like to use this opportunity to acknowledge the WCO technical assistance to the region in various areas, particularly in the area of capacity building and to solicit for the development of a WCO Customs Strategy that would follow up and ensure proper utilization of skills acquired through the WCO technical assistance, as newly acquired skills are not usually implemented or ingrained in the systems after training in most cases", he explained.

He urges the participants to open up on their existing HRM experiences with a focus on well-being and resilience to avail other administrations garner experience for improvement and to grasp this training opportunity to ensure that, the acquired skills are implemented in their administration’s HRM projects within the next two years of his term as Vice Chairman of the WCA.

On his part, Mr Abdel Kadar Sangho, Director Regional Office for Capacity Building, West and Central Africa, stated that galvanising collective efforts to build resilience is key to forestalling a repeat of the Covid-19 experience in the future.

“It is very important now for Customs Services to focus on the training of our personnel. This is because Customs are very important in international trade and that is why we faced a lot of difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic. So, it is important for customs to re-adapt and focus on skills that will enable officers to face any kind of challenge in the region.’’  Abdel Kadar reiterated.

The meeting which is slated for   11 to 14 October 2022 is held at Reiz Continental Hotel, Abuja and attracted Customs Officers from over 14 countries within the West and Africa Region with the theme "Resilience and well-being of Human Capital, Driving the Performance of Customs Administrations in the WCA Region."

hWorld Customs Organization - Organisation Mondiale des Douanes