Algerian forensic scientists adapt their regulations to the international system

In 2009, the Council of Europe agreed that it was imperative for Europe’s forensic laboratories to obtain international accreditation by 2021, hence the importance of this twinning project in Algeria. 

In 2019, this European project, which is a French-Spanish partnership with a focus on quality management within the forensic science department of the Algerian Police, started to work towards modernisation, adopting the new methods used in the field of forensic science with its international partners. 

The aim of the twinning is to provide support and technical assistance to researchers within a framework of judicial investigation to ensure that the Algerian quality management system is accredited in accordance with ISO/IEC 17025 international standards that determine the general requirements related to laboratory testing and calibration skills. 

The exchange of international information and data between the various police services is essential, in particular with regard to transnational organised crime. As a result, forensic laboratories have adopted these standards in order to standardise data and ensure maximum precision in the exchange of results. 

So far, activities such as expert reports, examinations, scientific and technical research and analysis have been carried out on criminal evidence and traces. The initiative has also been involved in the training of agents in the forensic chain and the creation and supply of forensic databases. 

Thanks to these activities, significant progress has been made on a number of methods to ensure that they are ready for accreditation in the near future. Products have also been created to carry out the bullet and casing comparison test, which has advanced the validation of both biological and ballistics test methods.