On November 29 the 2nd Regional Steering Group meeting was held in Bishkek. Representatives of border and customs services, Foreign Ministries, and migration management agencies of all Central Asian countries, as project beneficiaries, together with BOMCA Consortium partners and representatives of the Delegation of the European Union to the Kyrgyz Republic jointly assessed Programme achievements and challenges to date, discussed the work plan for the next year and spoke about countries’ priorities with regard to possible BOMCA continuation after 2018.

As it was mentioned by Kurmanbek Isakov, Deputy Head of the State Border Service of the Kyrgyz Republic, BOMCA diligently sought the best and most innovative ways to strengthen the capacity of beneficiaries through technical support, institutional development and improvement of professional skills and the capacity of border management agencies.

“Central Asia is a region that is becoming more and more strategically important for the stability and economic development of Asia and Europe. For this reason, it is a priority of the EU to support regional programmes aimed at enhancing cross border cooperation in Central Asia. Ever since its start in 2003, BOMCA has been one of the foremost examples of such cooperation”, says Mr. Cezare de Montis, EU Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic.

Now BOMCA 9 is on its halfway - starting from June 2015, over 900 beneficiaries from 5 Central Asian countries have participated in more than 60 events of different scope – from national and regional workshops to technical assistance missions and study visits to the EU Member States. Up to its completion, the 9th phase of BOMCA intends to conduct almost 100 additional activities, including the delivery of technical equipment to all five CA border agencies for the total amount of EUR 240 000 in 2017.