The UNODC-WCO Global Container Control Programme (CCP) enhances analytical skills of Customs on the use of the WCO national Customs Enforcement Network (nCEN) tool in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan

On 17-21 July and 24-28 July 2023, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Regional Office for Central Asia (UNODC ROCA) conducted national train-the-trainer workshops in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan for instructors and future users of the WCO nCEN application from the Customs Service under the Ministry of Finance of the Kyrgyz Republic (12 participants) and the Customs Committee under the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan (14 participants), including the CCP National Focal Points (NFPs) from the central-level services and experts from IT-departments, as well as the National Information-Analytical Center on Drug Control  of the Republic of Uzbekistan. 

nCEN is a system tool developed by the WCO to assist Customs administrations with the collection and storage of law-enforcement information at national level, with the additional capability to exchange this information at regional and international levels.

The training on the use of WCO nCEN tool led by the WCO trainers Agnieszka Butrym-Bielatko and Giorgi Kvaratskhelia being introduced in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan as part of the broader CCP component on Regional High-Risk Cargo Alert System (RECASYS) in Central Asia, provided basic information on how to use the nCEN tool in the Customs to enhance the capacities of Kyrgyz and Uzbek Customs officers who will be managing and using the nCEN application. The training participants learned on how nCEN works, its features and advantages, and familiarized themselves with its latest version and successful upgrade.

The participants attended both theoretical and practical training exercises and practiced various seizure and risk profiling cases. This practical approach afforded a greater understanding of the system, with participants having learned the nCEN use by inputting detailed data into it, applying the nCEN data to identify risk criteria and set up the data analytics functionality such as automated searches on new data, and matching rules that allow users to identify connections between data elements in the application.

Participants expressed their satisfaction of the capabilities the nCEN provides and their gratitude to UNODC and WCO for the Programme’s worthy contribution to the capacity-building of Customs officers in both countries.

The CCP Regional Segment for Central Asia is funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), and the Export Control and Related Border Security (EXBS) Programme, and Government of France.

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For more information, contact Vasilina Brazhko 

Communications and PR Specialist at 

UNODC Criminal Justice Programme in Central Asia 

UNODC PO in Kyrgyzstan by 

+996775987817 WhatsApp 

Vasilina.brazhko[at]un.org