In its effort to address the importance of reputation as one of the agency’s valuable assets and promote personnel development, the Bureau of Customs on December 01, 2021 through the Interim Training and Development Division, facilitated the conduct of Crisis Communication Training entitled: The Rules of the Game Have Changed by Crisis Communications Expert Gina Dela Vega-Cruz.

Among the objectives of the training include understanding crisis management as a strategy and responding to the challenges of news and information-dissemination in the age of social media. Before the end of the session, the participants also buckled down for a simulation of public statement and press conference in different crisis scenarios, where some represented as spokespeople and others as media correspondents and reporters.

A total of 85 Bureau of Customs personnel holding vital roles in management communication and information dissemination externally such as BOC Public Information Officers nationwide, Internal Information Coordination Committee in the central office, representatives from the 17 Offices of the District Collector and Customer Care Centers, and the entire personnel from the Public Information and Assistance Division (PIAD), completed the Crisis Communication Training.

Gina Dela Vega-Cruz is a communications graduate from the University of the Philippines with latin honor award cum laude, and was the first Asian to become the Director for Communications and Marketing of the Group of Eight – the elite association of Australia’s leading research universities. She served as a consultant to the Office of the Senate President and Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Chief of Staff, and is currently serving as a member of the Multi-Sector Governance Council (MSGC) of the BOC and an adviser to the Bureau in all its communication-related maters. Her expertise includes Communications, Crisis Management, Media Training, Public Speaking & Presentation Skills, SOcial Media, Corporate Storytelling and Leadership.

For more information, you may reach the Bureau of Customs by dialing 8705-6000 or send a message to any social media platform of the Bureau (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tiktok).