Suva, Fiji — Customs officers are being trained to identify counterfeit products and protect intellectual property rights, as part of a new webinar series launched by the Oceania Customs Organisation in partnership with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
OCO and USPTO are delivering a six week online programme, which started on April 15 and will end on May 20
targeting frontline border enforcement officers, intelligence officers, entry processing officers, and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) offices across OCO’s membership.
The training responds to a growing and increasingly sophisticated threat facing the region and the world. Intellectual property rights (IPR) violations have become a primary vehicle for organised economic crime, with counterfeiting and piracy now operating on a scale that rivals drug trafficking, weapons proliferation, and money laundering.
OCO Secretariat Operations Manager, Mrs Laisa Naivalurua said the programme directly addressed one of the most pressing challenges facing Pacific Customs administrations today.
“Expanding supply chains and the rise of e-commerce has made it more challenging for our Customs officers to detect this illicit trade,” she said. “This series will sharpen our officers’ ability to identify counterfeit goods which range from everyday consumer items to luxury products with a worrying increase in the trade of dangerous goods such as counterfeit automotive parts and pharmaceuticals”
Sessions include presentations from rightsholders and brand owners from the United States and partner nations. Participants will receive expert technical briefings, presentations on regional case studies drawn from OCO member countries, and an analysis of recent IPR enforcement successes and the emerging threats across the region. By the end of the programme, participants are expected to have strengthened their ability to identify branded goods and detect suspicious consignments, improved profiling and targeting capabilities, and a clearer understanding of strategies to strengthen Customs control over IPR-related trade. OCO has identified IPR enforcement as a strategic priority under its law enforcement and security mandate, particularly in the fight against transnational organised crime.
The programme is designed to strengthen Customs capacity to break up organised crime networks, protect consumers from counterfeit goods, and reduce the operating space available to those driving illegitimate trade across the region. Sessions will be held every Wednesday via Microsoft Teams. The programme is funded at no cost to participants. ENDS
The Oceania Customs Organisation (OCO) is an intergovernmental organisation supporting 24 Pacific member administrations to strengthen Customs capacity, improve revenue collection, and facilitate legitimate trade.
