Coordinated solutions for border management

The EUROFRONT project has held a webinar entitled Lifting Restrictions on Non-essential Travel in Latin America and Europe. Measures Taken and Lessons Learned in the European Union. The objective of the meeting was to share and exchange the experiences acquired in Europe during the pandemic and in this way try to prevent or minimise risks in Latin America, to learn from the mistakes made and expose practices that work and can be extrapolated to partner countries in the region.

EUROFRONT is a project managed by FIIAPP and financed by the European Union, that aims to improve security by strengthening border management, increasing the efficiency of operations and supporting the fight against human trafficking and migrant smuggling.

The meeting was attended by more than 160 delegates, including representatives from various Latin American and Caribbean countries. Among them, the EUROFRONT partners, which are Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Paraguay and countries in the region such as Uruguay and Chile. Likewise, attendees from countries such as the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Haiti also registered.

In addition, the virtual event was attended by FIIAPP’s director, Anna Terrón, and the head of the Unit for Latin America and the Caribbean at the General Directorate for International Cooperation and Development (DEVCO), Jorge de la Caballería.

The speakers highlighted that the pandemic has not called into question the relevance of the commitments reached between Latin America and Europe, but rather that it has strengthened ties between both regions and promoted the need to jointly assess health and security threats.

Finally, the project director, José Antonio Cambronero, concluded that “the pandemic, with all the negative impact it has had, has and will have in the future, teaches us and makes it clear that a global problem requires global solutions and coordinated measures between countries”.