On 26 January 2016, on the occasion of the International Customs Day, the INCU held a special event in Baku, Azerbaijan (as part of the Regional Office Winter School 2016) – the official launch of three new INCU Baku Regional Office initiatives:
- INCU Regional Office Internship Program
- INCU Regional Office Fellowship Program
- INCU Regional Office Lecture Series
The official launch of these initiatives was held at the WCO European Regional Office for Capacity Building (ROCB), which is located just a few blocks from the INCU Regional Office. The ceremony was attended by some 40 participants including foreign and Azerbaijani students and lecturers, customs officials, private sector representatives, staff of ROCB and the media.
The ceremony commenced with the welcoming address by Head of the WCO ROCB, Mr Roger Hermann, who gave brief introduction about the ROCB’s activities and stressed the importance of initiatives such as these and the workshop for capacity building activities in the region.
First Deputy Chairman of the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Lieutenant-General Mr Safar Mehdiyev, welcomed the participants and said it was praiseworthy that the event coincided with the International Customs Day. Mr Mehdiyev said that cooperation between the INCU and the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan is evolving and the fact that the event is organised by the Baku Regional Office of the network, brought together participants from leading educational institutions of Azerbaijan which would contribute to capacity building in the field of customs.
Head of INCU Secretariat, Dr Mikhail Kashubsky, also addressed the audience. He congratulated everyone on the occasion of the International Customs Day and expressed his gratitude to the Head of WCO ROCB, Mr Roger Hermann for hosting the event and the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan for their support of INCU activities. Speaking about the importance of the INCU Regional Office initiatives, Dr Kashubsky expressed his confidence in the training course/workshop and said that such and similar activities will continue to be held in the future on a regular basis.
Participants were then invited to watch a video address by INCU President, Professor David Widdowson.
- Video address by INCU President, Professor David Widdowson: Watch
After the conclusion of the official ceremony Mr Safar Mehdiyev and Dr Mikhail Kashubsky gave brief interviews to the press.
