WELCOME
ICAO will hold the Ninth Symposium and Exhibition on Machine Readable Travel Documents (MRTDs), Biometrics and Border Security from 22 to 24 October 2013. A select group of Industry Partners will complement the Symposium, showcasing a broad range of products and services related to MRTDs, biometric identification, travel document security applications and border management systems.
This global annual event will address ICAO MRTD standards and specifications, identification management best practices and related border security issues. In addition, the Symposium will provide an update on the results of the 2013 ICAO Assembly and the ICAO Traveller Identification Programme (ICAO TRIP).
The special feature of the 2013 Symposium is focus on the benefits of implementing Automated Border Controls (ABCs) systems using ICAO standards and specifications and the benefits of using effective inspections tools such as the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD) for border control. It will explore a broad range of considerations that shape state-of-the-art ABC developments: newly-emerging technologies, trust, reliability, non-intrusiveness, biometrics, PKD, costs and privacy and human rights.
The Symposium also will explore the role of inter-agency and cross-border cooperation in securing border integrity, including the role of ABCs and electronic data sharing. It will address challenges and good practices in providing implementation and capacity-building assistance to States in the ABC and biometric MRTD areas.
ABC operational and technical guidelines, biometric verification processes, quality control, managing errors and exceptions, proper reading of biometric travel documents at the border, trusted traveller programmes, challenges to border integrity and ways to combat them – and the role of travel documents and electronic data sharing in furthering those objectives – are only part of the this year’s specialized programme.
The 2013 Symposium follows last year's successful event, attended by over 500 participants from States, international organizations, companies and other institutions, and it will take place at ICAO Headquarters, 999 University Street, Montréal, Quebec, Canada. The Symposium programme will be posted on this website as soon as it becomes available and will be continually updated.
The presentations and handouts will be available in English only. Simultaneous interpretation will be available in English, French, Spanish and Russian.
Symposium speakers and facilitators include world leaders in the field, policy makers and senior managers, top experts, practitioners and researchers, many from the relevant working groups of ICAO, ISO and other international organizations.
For details please see the Programme link above.
For more information please contact:
MRTD Programme
Phone: +1 514-954-8219, extension 6329 or 6056
Fax: +1 514-954-5061
