Smuggling activities continue to threaten the healthy development of international trade like an undercurrent. Imagine customs officials facing increasingly complex smuggling methods while relying solely on outdated tools and techniques. To address this challenge and enhance anti-smuggling capabilities across Central Asia, a crucial training initiative recently took place in Moscow.
From April to May 2019, the Regional Intelligence Liaison Office for the Commonwealth of Independent States (RILO CIS) conducted an intensive five-day training program at its Moscow headquarters. The course specifically targeted newly appointed National Contact Point (NCP) officers from the customs administrations of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
CEN: A Data-Driven Weapon Against Smuggling
The Customs Enforcement Network (CEN), managed by the World Customs Organization (WCO), serves as a global database for customs enforcement information. This system enables member customs administrations to securely share data about seized goods, smuggling trends, suspects, and criminal organizations. CEN has become an indispensable tool for risk assessment, targeting, and intelligence analysis in customs operations worldwide.
The curriculum covered several critical operational aspects:
Standardized Data Entry: Ensuring all CEN submissions meet international standards for accuracy and consistency, facilitating subsequent analysis and information sharing.
Advanced Data Retrieval: Mastering CEN's search and filtering functions to quickly locate relevant information while utilizing the system's analytical tools to detect smuggling patterns.
Intelligence Synthesis: Developing skills to combine CEN data with other intelligence sources, creating comprehensive operational pictures to support enforcement actions.
CENcomm: Secure Platform for Real-Time Intelligence Sharing
Beyond CEN system training, the program emphasized using the RILO CIS CENcomm platform - a secure online environment for confidential law enforcement information exchange. This specialized communication channel enables rapid intelligence sharing and coordinated operations among customs administrations.
Through practical exercises, participants gained hands-on experience with:
Encrypted Communications: Implementing CENcomm's security protocols to protect sensitive operational data.
Information Exchange: Effectively sharing intelligence reports and analytical findings with partner customs agencies.
Joint Operations: Coordinating multinational enforcement actions through the platform's collaboration features.
The training enables Kyrgyz and Uzbek customs officers to work more effectively with RILO CIS and member administrations in combating transnational smuggling networks.
Building Regional Enforcement Capacity
Participants reported significant professional development from the training, noting substantial improvements in their NCP operational capabilities. The acquired skills in intelligence collection, analysis, and sharing will enhance their countries' anti-smuggling efforts.
This initiative represents part of RILO CIS's broader commitment to strengthening customs enforcement across Central Asia through training, technical support, and intelligence coordination. Future collaboration plans include continued partnership with Kyrgyz and Uzbek customs authorities to maintain regional security and trade integrity.
The program not only advanced the professional skills of Central Asian customs officers but also strengthened regional cooperation mechanisms. Through improved intelligence sharing and coordinated enforcement, customs administrations across the region are better positioned to combat smuggling operations, protecting national security and economic interests while creating a more stable foundation for trade development.