BRUSSELS: On 31 October, I will conclude my service as Deputy Secretary General of the World Customs Organization (WCO). As that moment approaches, I would like to share with you a few words of gratitude, reflection and farewell.
Serving the WCO and, above all, serving its Members over the past nine years has been one of the greatest privileges of my professional life. I remain profoundly grateful for the confidence you placed in me by electing me twice to this position, and for the support and trust you have extended to me throughout my tenure.
My decision to leave the Organization before the completion of my second term has not been an easy one. The WCO has occupied a very significant place in my professional life, and the opportunity to work with such a diverse and committed global Customs family has been both an honour and a source of constant learning and inspiration.
Looking back, what matters most to me is not any single initiative, but what we have been able to achieve TOGETHER. Throughout these years, I have sought to ensure that the work of the Secretariat remained firmly anchored in the priorities, challenges and expectations of Members, and that the Organization stayed relevant, responsive and forward-looking.
Together, we strengthened and gave renewed relevance to the WCO Strategic Plan, making it a more meaningful instrument for guiding the Organization’s work and responding to Members’ needs. Throughout this process, we built a closer and more direct relationship between the Secretariat and Members, placing greater emphasis on consultations, dialogue and regular communication so that your perspectives could more effectively shape our priorities and activities.
We reinvented the WCO’s approach to foresight and environmental scanning, strengthening our ability to anticipate change rather than simply reacting to it. In an increasingly complex and uncertain global environment, I believe this capacity will remain essential to keeping Customs administrations, and the WCO itself, prepared for the challenges and opportunities ahead.
We laid the foundations for the WCO’s modernization journey, defining a Modernization Plan aimed at ensuring that the Organization itself continues to evolve in line with the rapidly changing environment in which Customs administrations operate. We also advanced a renewed Capacity-Building Paradigm, seeking to make our implementation support to Members one that is more strategic, sustainable, and responsive to specific needs.
I am equally proud to have contributed to the work on the definition of the Performance Measurement Mechanism (PMM). The PMM represents an important step in strengthening the Organization’s capacity to demonstrate results, promote evidence-based decision-making and support continuous improvement across the Customs community.
None of these achievements belong to one individual. They are the result of collective efforts and shared ambitions to build great things together. I therefore wish to express my deepest appreciation to all of you who shared your ideas, challenged our thinking, contributed your experience and worked with us to move these initiatives forward.
I also want to convey my sincere gratitude to the staff of the WCO Secretariat. I have had the privilege of working alongside exceptionally dedicated and talented colleagues, whose professionalism, resilience and commitment to Members are at the heart of this Organization. Their
work, often carried out behind the scenes and under demanding circumstances, deserves the highest recognition.
My thanks also go to the Secretary General, under whose leadership I have had the honour to serve, as well as to the Chairpersons of the Council with whom I have worked over the years. Their leadership, guidance and partnership have been invaluable, and I am grateful for the constructive
relationships we have built in advancing the objectives of the Organization.
Above all, I leave with a profound sense of gratitude. International organizations derive their legitimacy from their Members. Throughout my tenure, I have never lost sight of the fact that our responsibility at the Secretariat is ultimately to serve you. Your trust has therefore been both an honour and a responsibility that I have carried with the greatest seriousness.
The WCO today faces a world of accelerating technological, economic and geopolitical change. I am confident, however, that the Organization possesses the collective strength required to navigate this changing landscape. Its greatest asset remains the global Customs family itself: a family that is defined by professionalism, solidarity and hard work.
As I move on to the next chapter of my professional and personal journey, I will carry with me many friendships, countless memories and a deep respect for the work that Customs administrations perform every day in support of their societies. I will also carry the conviction that when Members come together around a shared purpose, this Organization can be an extraordinary force for progress.
Thank you once again for the confidence you placed in me, for your partnership over these nine years, and for the privilege of allowing me to serve you and the World Customs Organization. I leave proud of what we have accomplished together, grateful for what you have taught me, and
confident in what the WCO can continue to achieve.
I wish the WCO, its Members and the entire Customs community every success in the years ahead. Although my formal responsibilities will end on 31 October, my respect for this Organization and my connection to the global Customs family will remain.
With my deepest appreciation and warmest regards
Ricardo TREVINO CHAPA
Deputy Secretary General
