WCO launches the Second Cycle of the WCO Performance Measurement Mechanism with call for Members to participate in self-assessment phase

• WCO Performance Measurement Mechanism (PMM) is an essential tool for the global Customs community to strengthen evidence-based performance measurement.
• PPM supports administrations in setting measurable goals, assessing progress, driving reforms, and guiding investment priorities.
• Second cycle introduces comprehensive coverage of Customs competencies, featuring refined and well-structured outcomes, more sophisticated Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and an upgraded, digitalized platform for data collection and analysis.

The second cycle of the WCO's PMM reached a new stage in its development with the launch of the self-assessment phase during the 3^rd Meeting of the Performance Measurement Mechanism Project Team (PMMPT) from 8 to 9 December 2025. This self-assessment phase aims to empower Customs administrations to enhance their strategic decision-making by providing them with a comprehensive and standardized assessment framework, covering the full spectrum of Customs competencies, namely Trade Facilitation and Economic Competitiveness, Revenue Collection, Enforcement, Security and Protection of Society and Organizational Development.

The PMM is a key monitoring tool that not only supports administrations in setting measurable goals, assessing progress, driving reforms, it also enables the WCO Secretariat to enhance the way it tailors its capacity-building assistance to Members' specific needs and contributes to the WCO's global efforts to make Customs fairer, more efficient and effective. All WCO Members are now invited to actively participate in the self-assessment phase of this second cycle of the PMM by submitting their data through the PMM Platform.

PPM - Discussions on Performance

The meeting at the WCO featured in-depth technical discussions focused on the self-assessment phase. Delegates endorsed the key deliverables that will guide this new phase and shared their national experiences on their use of the PMM. Deliberations also reaffirmed the PMM's role as a critical tool for defining well-targeted data-informed capacity-building interventions.

In her opening remarks, Isolde Murphy, Director, WCO Implementation and Capacity Development Directorate, commended Members for their sustained engagement throughout the development and initial implementation of the PMM and stressed the importance of increasing Members' participation to ensure robust longitudinal analysis and a clearer picture of global Customs performance, and therefore of maintaining regular PMM cycles.

Added Value for Members

The meeting brought together a wide representation of WCO Members, which shows the growing interest from Members in taking part in the PMM and its fully digitized Platform.

"The PMM KPIs results revealed, through a gap analysis, that some areas such as the Authorized Economic Operators (AEO) programme, E-commerce, Post-clearance controls, Risk Management and targeted controls and competency-based HR system, still need capacity building", said the delegate from Mauritius.

The added value of the PMM within the framework of the WTO TFA National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) was also underscored by the delegate from The Gambia by saying that "As Chair of the National Trade Facilitation Committee, the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA) will incorporate the elements of the PMM into the Committee's performance metrics as it wants to move the PMM beyond the GRA and engage the NTFC, enabling the Committee to support improvements in national economic competitiveness".

The representative of Greece further emphasized the PMM's role in fostering collaboration across the entire border ecosystem: "The PMM encouraged us to see performance as a shared responsibility, not just a Customs issue; end-to-end measurement supports evidence-based trade facilitation and dialogue with stakeholders. The national KPIs show how quickly Customs processes declarations, whereas the PMM KPIs show how quickly goods are released along the entire supply chain".

The PMM's value in driving institutional modernization was then further highlighted by the representative of Madagascar, who said: "The PMM was an opportunity for us to move data-driven governance forward […]. It also helped us to improve our strategic planning […] and digital transformation processes. It was a very powerful tool for institutional transformation".

Next Steps

During the session, Charikleia Titopoulou, representing the Independent Authority for Public Revenue of Greece, and Papa Makhmout Fall, from the General Directorate of Senegal Customs, were elected as Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the PMMPT, respectively.

Active and broad-based participation remains essential to ensuring continued success and overall impact of the PMM. All WCO Members are invited to actively participate in the self-assessment phase of this second cycle of the PMM by submitting their data through the PMM Platform.

• For further information, please contact the WCO PMM Team at [email protected]