WCO SG meets with the DG of the European Space Agency

On 7 September, the Secretary General of the World Customs Organisation (WCO), Dr. Kunio Mikuriya, met with the Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), Dr. Josef Aschbacher, and his security advisors.

The two parties discussed about the activities of their respective organization, the potential contribution of Earth observation technologies to Customs' duties, and how cooperation could be envisaged in this field. The ESA conducts and participates in research and development programmes in many civil application areas, including security.

In this context, Director General Aschbacher expressed his readiness to assist the WCO and its Members in the search for solutions mobilising geo-data and Earth observations for the accomplishment of their missions at borders.