In an effort to enhance knowledge about international laws on environmentally sensitive commodities in Grenada, the CARICOM Secretariat hosted a workshop for Customs Officers and Border Control Officials on November 11-13, 2014.

The main objective was to enhance Grenada’s capacity to implement multilateral environmental agreements, and to improve its management environment and natural resources.

Speaking at an opening ceremony for the workshop, Dr. Thérèse Yarde Project Coordinator, Caribbean Hub Capacity Building ACP-MEAs, CARICOM Secretariat, thanked funding partners the European Union and  the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for enabling the expansion and reach of CARICOM Customs related activities.

She said that the principal concern for Customs Officers and other regulators in the Caribbean was controlling the entry of dangerous or potentially dangerous goods from other parts of the world.

UNEP Programme Officer Mr. Mamadou Kane said it was a long standing partnership with CARICOM, the EU and UNEP. He said his organization looked forward to the fruitful outcome of the meeting and the enhancement of the capacity of  Grenadian customs officials to support the implementation of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs).

A Regional Customs Workshop under the project was held at the World Customs Organization Regional Training Centre in the Dominican Republic, in July 2012.  Coming out of that workshop it was recommended that training sessions be held at the national level to widen its reach and impact.  This workshop in Grenada was the second in a series of national workshops to be hosted on this issue. The first one was hosted in Saint Lucia in April 2013.