Cairo – The International Organization for Migration in Egypt (IOM) organized a training on Humanitarian Border Management (HBM) for 25 participants from the Egyptian Customs Authority from 10 till 14 December 2023.

Given the interlinkages between irregular movements of goods and of humans, IOM aims to encourage increased intra-state and inter-state cooperation of relevant national agencies concerned with border management, including the Customs Authority. IOM is actively supporting the harmonization of capacity building efforts through the development and implementation of standardized training courses tailored for customs, border police, immigration authorities, and other border management officials at the policy and operational levels.

Building on the successful collaboration between IOM and the Egyptian Ministry of Finance a training on HBM took place in Ain Sokhna, Red Sea which tackled several subjects such as Integrated Border Management and International Migration Law and its relevant branches (Human Rights, Humanitarian Law, Refugee Law and Transnational Criminal Law) pertinent to Humanitarian Border Management - a component of Migration Crisis Operational Framework   (MCOF), as well as gender mainstreaming, and first-aid sessions.

“The collaboration between Ministry of Finance and IOM which started in 2022, brings a huge outcome in increasing the capacities of the customs authorities’ officials” said General Rashwan, head of Human resources at the Egyptian Ministry of Finance.

“This specialized training provides the Egyptian Customs Authority officials at border crossing points with the key knowledge on the international operational and legal standards necessary in responding to situations of humanitarian crisis at borders – so much needed in the current regional context” highlighted Michal Nobis, IOM expert on Immigration and Border Governance.

IOM aims to support Egypt in adopting migration management practices to promote legal forms of migration and respect for the human rights of migrants. This event was generously funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration through the sub-regional desk of Africa Regional Migration Program ARMP in Cairo.