German Students Join WCO for African Customs Training Initiative

German Students Join WCO for African Customs Training Initiative

African students from the University of Münster visited the World Customs Organization (WCO) to gain insights into customs capacity building. Through expert lectures and participation in meetings, the students gained a more direct understanding of the current development status of African customs and the WCO's support measures. The WCO will continue to strengthen cooperation with African customs to help its modernization and transformation. This visit highlighted the importance of international collaboration in enhancing customs efficiency and promoting trade facilitation across the African continent.

African Customs Labs Adopt Asiapacific Methods to Boost Trade

African Customs Labs Adopt Asiapacific Methods to Boost Trade

African customs laboratory leaders visited the Asia-Pacific region to learn from best practices and enhance their capabilities. Through laboratory visits and experience sharing, the African representatives gained in-depth understanding of the operational models, technological applications, and management methods of regional customs laboratories in the Asia-Pacific. This activity promoted capacity building for African customs laboratories and laid the foundation for regional cooperation, contributing to African trade development and economic prosperity. The visit focused on practical knowledge transfer and establishing future collaborative efforts.

EUWCO Project Supports African Free Trade with Harmonized Rules

EUWCO Project Supports African Free Trade with Harmonized Rules

The EU-WCO Rules of Origin Africa Programme aims to support the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) by 2025. It focuses on finalizing the rules of origin, harmonizing key African origin regimes, and developing a community of practice for rules of origin. This initiative is expected to lay the groundwork for economic prosperity in Africa by facilitating trade and ensuring the smooth implementation of the AfCFTA agreement. The program will contribute to a more predictable and transparent trade environment across the continent.

Algeria Studies Dutch Customs Labs to Enhance African Trade

Algeria Studies Dutch Customs Labs to Enhance African Trade

Algerian customs experts visited the Netherlands to study customs laboratories, aiming to learn advanced practices for building a modern laboratory in their country. This visit is part of the EU-World Customs Organization HS-Africa project, which focuses on improving customs management and promoting trade facilitation in Africa. The study tour covered laboratory design, technical equipment, workflow, and tariff classification. The insights gained will provide valuable references for the construction of the Algerian customs laboratory.

African Currency Markets Show Mixed Trends on Dec 27

African Currency Markets Show Mixed Trends on Dec 27

This report provides daily exchange rates as of December 27, 2025, for key African countries including Nigeria, Uganda, Morocco, Egypt, and currencies like West African CFA Franc and Central African CFA Franc. The data is sourced from exchangerate-api and is intended to serve as a reference for investors, helping them understand African market dynamics and make more informed investment decisions. Please note that exchange rates may vary across different sources, and investments should be made with caution.

WCO JICA Team Up to Enhance African Trade Facilitation

WCO JICA Team Up to Enhance African Trade Facilitation

The World Customs Organization (WCO) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are strengthening their collaboration to enhance trade facilitation in Africa. This initiative focuses on improving Africa's competitiveness in global value chains through the development of One-Stop Border Posts, capacity building, and the optimization of trade corridors. The WCO Secretary General also lectured scholarship students on strategic priorities, emphasizing information exchange, agreement implementation, and e-commerce regulation. These efforts aim to support sustainable economic development across the African continent.

WCO Backs Gambias Customs Reform for West African Leadership

WCO Backs Gambias Customs Reform for West African Leadership

The World Customs Organization (WCO), through the WACAM project, is assisting the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA) in building a competency-based human resource management system. Through expert consultations and institutionalization efforts, the GRA is expected to become a benchmark for human resource management in West Africa, offering valuable lessons for other developing countries. This initiative aims to strengthen the GRA's capabilities and contribute to its overall effectiveness and efficiency in customs administration.

WCO Launches Ecommerce Framework to Boost African Digital Trade

WCO Launches Ecommerce Framework to Boost African Digital Trade

The World Customs Organization (WCO) conducted an online workshop for Eastern, Southern, Western, and Central Africa, focusing on the implementation of the E-Commerce Framework of Standards (E-Commerce FoS). By interpreting the 15 standards and sharing practical examples, the workshop aimed to help African customs seize digital trade opportunities, address challenges, and promote the healthy development of cross-border e-commerce. This initiative seeks to inject new vitality into the African economy by facilitating smoother and more efficient online trade processes across the continent.

WCO Belgian Customs Academy Expand African Customs Training Partnership

WCO Belgian Customs Academy Expand African Customs Training Partnership

Customs officials from French-speaking African countries visited the WCO headquarters during their training at the Belgian Customs Academy. They participated in presentations on intellectual property, and health & safety projects. The WCO's long-standing collaboration with the Belgian Customs Academy significantly contributes to customs capacity building in Africa through tailored training programs. This partnership supports economic prosperity and social development across the African continent.

WCO Backs African Customs Agencies to Strengthen Green Trade

WCO Backs African Customs Agencies to Strengthen Green Trade

The World Customs Organization (WCO), in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme and the Basel Convention Secretariat, conducted workshops in Kenya and Tanzania. These workshops aimed to enhance the knowledge and enforcement capabilities of the two countries' customs departments regarding the Basel Convention and the Montreal Protocol. This initiative is part of the Sida-WCO TFCM Programme, designed to promote sustainable development in Sub-Saharan Africa and strengthen the role of customs in environmental protection. The workshops focused on identifying and intercepting illegal shipments of hazardous waste and ozone-depleting substances.