WASHINGTON: Guam will host the 19th Oceania Customs Organization Annual Conference from May 2 to 5. Conference participants will discuss customs modernization and reforms related to the theme “Data Analysis for Effective Border Management.” “This year’s conference theme is relevant and timely as our region, including Guam, has seen a steady increase in transnational organized crime, particularly drug trafficking and financial crimes,” the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency stated. Human trafficking has also become a great concern to our region, according to the Guam agency. The conference will involve about 50 delegates representing 23 customs administrations of Pacific island nations and territories, including Australia and New Zealand.
Seventeen global stakeholders and representatives of international and regional organizations and development partners such as the World Bank, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the United Nations Conference of Trade and Development and the World Customs Organization are also expected to attend. The Oceania Customs Organization conferences provide member administrations the platform to network, form partnerships, collaborate and share knowledge, information, training, intelligence and data to better protect their borders.
