The second EUR/NAT Regional Facilitation seminar was conducted bilingually (English and Russian with simultaneous interpretation) from 21 to 24 November 2017 in the ICAO Paris office. This seminar focused on the implementation of Annex 9 (Facilitation).
56 participants from 23 States and two regional organizations discussed actively the challenges of implementing the wide variety of ICAO Annex 9 standards and shared best practices of successful approaches.
(See full size picture)
The seminar built on the utmost importance of understanding the role and responsibilities of States and ICAO respectively.
The discussions touched on the electronic filing of differences (EFOD) system, as an important means to evaluate compliance, and States were invited to share their views on the pros and cons of EFOD. The seminar also addressed the development of a National Civil Aviation Facilitation Programme (NCAFP) and/or Committee as the basis and starting point to best coordinate all players involved in implementing Annex 9 standards and recommended practices. States shared their experiences and participants were engaged in group work to develop a prototype NCAFP. The second EUR NAT Regional Facilitation seminar was a lively and interactive event which finally allowed everybody to take home some concrete material. In conclusion, the participants expressed their thanks to ICAO and requested that another similar regional event on implementation of Annex 9 be organized soon as it allowed for a great learning experience and enjoyable interaction between States from all areas of the EUR/NAT wide regions.
