OSCE Office in Tajikistan conducts risk management training for Afghan customs officers

DUSHANBE, 5 May 2010 - Afghan customs officers today completed a five-day training course in risk management and profiling organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

Twenty customs officers from Afghanistan's Custom Department headquarters, Kabul airport and the northeastern city of Kunduz took part in the training course. Similar training in risk management and profiling will be delivered to Tajik customs officers at the end of May.

"The courses will improve the skills of customs officers both in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, helping to reduce trafficking of illegal goods across the Tajik-Afghan border," said Klaus Rasmussen, the Deputy Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan. "The two countries share a border and speak similar languages which means that the OSCE Office in Tajikistan can play a special role in supporting OSCE engagement with Afghanistan."

In addition, a series of four training courses on search and detection techniques in cargo vehicle inspections will be organized for Tajik and Afghan customs officers in late June.

The training course in risk management and profiling is part of the Customs Assistance Project implemented by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan. It was carried out with the support and on the premises of the OSCE Border Management Staff College in Dushanbe.