Approximately 200 WCO member administrations and stakeholder organisations participated in the 9th session of the WCO Capacity Building Committee (CBC) from 26-28 February.
Building on the theme of “Smart Customs”, the CBC benefited from presentations on the latest technological trends that are already impacting Customs operations and training. Developments in remote sensing, machine learning, robotics, augmented reality and virtual reality are already seeing application in the field, with the trend set to increase over the coming years. At the same time, the CBC engaged retrospectively on the history of Customs and the evolving mandates of Customs administrations beyond revenue collection, taking into account social protection, trade facilitation and security.
Intersecting the past and the future, the CBC also discussed present-day trends in performance measurement, highlighting member applications that promote tactical and strategic decision-making, while increasing accountability and integrity. The CBC also took into account the latest developments on questions of diversity and gender equality, taking note of the WCO’s efforts in this area.