As part of BOMCA’s commitment to share law enforcement “best practices” and demonstrate practical joint work of EU border agencies as well as modern approaches in the field of border security, the State Border Guard of Latvia hosted a study visit of Central Asian delegates from border, customs, migration, veterinary and phytosanitary agencies between 14-16 June.
Between 8-10 June invited EU experts from the Customs Authority of the Republic of Lithuania facilitated working meetings with key national partners from the Customs Service of Tajikistan. During the working meetings the compatibility of the national legislation of Tajikistan with the General Annex of the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC) was assessed and accession measures on reform and improvement of the customs legislation were evaluated.
A technical assistance mission on implementation of certain chapters of the National Strategy of Integrated Border Management in Kyrgyzstan (IBM Strategy) was held in Bishkek between 7-10 June. The expert team, consisting of Col. Vladimirs Zaguzovs, Head of Administration at the Latvian Border Guards and Prof. Normunds Rudzitis, Professor at Riga Technical University, conducted a series of bilateral and joint meetings with the main IBM actors in Kyrgyzstan, including the Prime Minister’s Office, the State Border Service, the State Customs Service and other ministries and agencies involved in border management in Kyrgyzstan.
From 1-3 June in Tajikistan and 6-8 June in Kazakhstan, BOMCA carried out technical missions in order to share international best practices on irregular migration management and readmission procedures. For this purpose BOMCA invited experts Mr. Rui Paulo Alexandre Dias Zilhão from the Immigration and Border Service of Portugal and Ms. Anzelika Alika from the State Border Guard of Latvia to meet key national partners from the relevant law enforcement authorities in Kazakhstan and Tajikistan in order to discuss national legislation and advanced international practices on dealing with vulnerable groups of migrants passing through borders, as well as to explore the legislation of the EU countries in relation to working with such migrant groups.
On 27 May, BOMCA hosted the National Steering Group (NSG) Meeting in Turkmenistan, which gathered the main BOMCA national counterparts in the country – the State Border Service, the State Customs Service, the State Migration Service, the State Service on Plant Quarantine and the State Veterinary Service of the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, and the State Sanitary-epidemiological Service of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry – as well as representatives from the EU and the BOMCA Consortium.
From 18-20 May in Kazakhstan and 23-25 May in Tajikistan BOMCA carried out a technical mission in order to support the border agencies of both countries in their efforts to improve the efficiency of green border surveillance and develop risk analysis. For this purpose BOMCA invited the expert Mr. Dzintars Pavārnieks, Associate Professor at the Department for Border Guard and Immigration Service State Border Guard College of the Latvian Republic, who met key national partners from the border authorities of Kazakhstan and Tajikistan.
BOMCA is continuing its support for the professional development of the programme’s national partners. As part of this, between 11 May and 18 May a series of national workshops were held in Dushanbe and Bishkek respectively, facilitated by EU experts from the State Revenue Service of the Republic of Latvia and the State Border Guard of the Republic of Latvia. The workshops gathered national experts from the border guard, customs, and phytosanitary and veterinary services of the Kyrgyz Republic. In total, over 30 partners took part in the workshops and expanded their knowledge and skills in the area of proper HR management, financial planning and control.
Duration: 16 May – 15 June 2016
