WCO celebrates International Women’s Day 2025 by highlighting the outcomes of its ‘Successful Women in Customs’ campaign
BRUSSELS : On 8 March, the World Customs Organization (WCO) joins the international community in celebrating International Women’s Day 2025 by highlighting the outcomes of its ‘Successful Women In Customs’ campaign.
Launched by WCO Secretary General Ian Saunders in March 2024, the campaign has brought to the forefront the inspiring stories of 10 strong and capable women from all around the globe working in Customs.
During the kick-off event for the campaign, echoing the saying “You cannot be what you cannot see”, Secretary General Saunders emphasized the importance of showcasing influential figures to inspire future generations.
The successful women in Customs interviewed for this campaign are invited to share details of their achievements, the challenges faced in their careers, their work environment, their ambitions, their passions and their personal life. Each interview concludes with their views on broader topics such as leadership, communication, ethics and continuous learning.
In keeping with the International Women’s Day 2025 theme: “For ALL women and girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment” and the WCO theme for 2025: “Customs Delivering on its Commitment to Efficiency, Security and Prosperity”, today the WCO wishes to underscore the added value that women bring to their Customs administrations and the crucial roles they play in day-to-day Customs’ operations.
“All these women practice continuous self-reflection and self-improvement, demonstrating determination and resilience. This strengthens our belief that gender equality and diversity (GED) is not only a matter of equal rights, but that it can also form part of a Customs administration’s performance strategy since it unlocks innovation”, said Secretary General Saunders.
Through this campaign, the WCO is honouring the achievements not only of these leading women but of all women working in the Customs sector, and is reaffirming its commitment to fostering an environment where everyone, regardless of gender, can achieve their full potential.
Other recent WCO initiatives to address GED include the launch of the third edition[1] of its Compendium on Gender Equality and Diversity in Customs. This updated edition was published with financial support from His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) of the United Kingdom, under the WCO Accelerate Trade Facilitation Programme.
Other vital resources in this domain include the updated 2023 version of the Gender Equality Organizational Assessment Tool, designed to help Member administrations assess and improve their gender equality practices, and the Declaration of the Customs Co-operation Council on Gender Equality and Diversity, adopted in 2020.
Message of the Secretary General