23/10/2023
Ghana's Ministry of the Interior has identified international co-operation through the European NORPREVSEC programme as a priority to stabilise the country in the face of the threat of terrorism and transnational crime
Steering Committee attendees
The European NORPREVSEC programme has participated in the first Steering Committee meeting at the Ghana Police Service headquarters to assess the implementation of the INTERPOL WAPIS programme, which aims to connect and digitise all Ghana’s security agencies nationwide to enhance the exchange of police information.
The meeting began with the Minister of the Interior, the second-in-command of the Ghana Immigration Service, the Director of the Criminal Investigation Department and the project manager representing the FIIAPP at the presidential table.
According to the Minister of Interior, implementing a national database is not an option, but a priority for the Ghanaian government. He thanked the representatives of all the security agencies involved in this programme and assured that the Ministry of Interior will provide a specific budget for the expansion of the WAPIS tool, especially in northern Ghana. He also thanked the Delegation of the European Union in Ghana and especially the FIIAPP for implementing the training and linking of the five regions of Northern Ghana.
The Director of the Criminal Investigation Department confirmed her full support for the programme until its completion and thanked the FIIAPP for the implementation of more than 20 trainings and the training of more than 800 personnel from the five northern regions of Ghana.
The INTERPOL WAPIS Director for Ghana detailed the various trainings to be conducted in 2023 to 2024. For his part, the Director of NORPREVSEC outlined the operational capacity of the programme to implement and develop the objectives of the National Security Strategy in northern Ghana, as well as an analysis of the results obtained since its inception 18 months ago. He also gave a brief summary of the various trainings leading up to the end of the programme.
Within the framework of this meeting, it is worth highlighting the impetus given by the Ghanaian Ministry of the Interior to NORPREVSEC. This programme, implemented by the FIIAPP to ensure security in northern Ghana, has been designated as a priority actor in the implementation of Ghana’s National Security Strategy. The project has become a benchmark for its operational capacity due to teamwork and inter-agency coordination.
