OSCE Border Management Staff College approaches its 10-year anniversary with the conclusion of 23rd staff course

Twenty-six mid to senior-ranking border security and management officials completed a staff course at the OSCE Border Management Staff College (BMSC) on 1 March in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. It was the 23rd such course offered by the College since its founding.

The staff course aims at building capacity and promoting high standards in border management and security. It covers an extensive array of topics in all three OSCE dimensions of security. It also provides its participants with a platform for sharing best practices in the field.

Jonathan Holland, Director of the BMSC, noted that the 23rd staff course bears a particular significance for the College: “It is our last such course conducted prior to the celebration of the 10 year anniversary of the BMSC in May. Launched as a temporary project almost a decade ago, it has evolved into a successful endeavour. It has become a centre of academic excellence designed specifically to serve the global border security community, and we look forward to welcoming many more courses in the future.”

Representatives of customs, border, phytosanitary, immigration, drug control and training institutes from 16 different countries – Afghanistan, Albania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Italy, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Mongolia, Republic of North Macedonia, Poland, Spain, Tajikistan, Turkey and Ukraine – have participated in BMSC courses.

Reflecting on her experience with the BMSC, Meeri-Maria Jaarva, Mediation Support Officer with the OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre, who delivered training sessions during the course, noted: “Recently I met some BMSC alumni who had previously attended short courses and were now participating in the year-long blended-learning course. The fact that alumni come back for more is the best feedback the BMSC can get”.

Topics covered during the four-week staff course included promotion of border security and management in the OSCE area, border security and management models, elements of border control and co-operation, economic, environmental and human aspects of border security. In-class activities were complemented by two study visits to Tajik border crossing points on the borders with Uzbekistan and Afghanistan.

A roundtable discussion on countering corruption in the context of border security and management was conducted in the framework of the course. The event brought together subject area experts, representatives of diplomatic missions and international organizations, and participants of the 23rd Staff Course.