ACCRA, Ghana - INTERPOL’s 18th African Regional Conference ended on Thursday with delegates agreeing on a number of measures to enhance cross-border coordination of police work in the region and improve communication of crucial criminal information among police across Africa.

More than 135 delegates from 41 countries addressed urgent policing issues for Africa, including measures to fight terrorism and organized crime, trafficking in human beings, drug trafficking, stolen motor vehicles and environmental crime.

Resolutions approved by delegates include:

• setting up an African police crisis management structure and cross-border procedures to deal quickly and effectively with any major terrorist attack in the region
  
  
• increased cooperation and coordination between INTERPOL's General Secretariat in Lyon, France, the organization's National Central Bureaus and regional bureaus in Africa and regional Police Chiefs Committees across the continent
  
  
• establishing a network of contact officers in each INTERPOL National Central Bureau in Africa who will be the designated first point of contact, and coordinators, for major international police operations in the region
  
  
• extension where possible of use of INTERPOL's I-24/7 global police communications network beyond National Central Bureaus to other law enforcement and customs entities in the region
  
  
• ensuring that more criminal data from Africa is contributed to INTERPOL's databases and that police in Africa make full use of the central databases in their work
  
  
• increasing the effort by National Central Bureaus to combat environmental crime and increasing coordination of information sharing about such crimes

INTERPOL has a strong presence in Africa, based on an effective working relationship between key regional Police Chiefs committees and INTERPOL's National Central Bureaus and regional bureaus on the continent. INTERPOL has more than 30 seconded officers working in its three African regional bureaus.

Over the past two years, INTERPOL has connected 31 African nations to the I-24/7 communications system and has a EUR 5 million programme in place to ensure that all remaining countries are connected as soon as possible.

'The majority of African countries have been connected to I-24/7 and in many others connection is imminent,' INTERPOL President Jackie Selebi said. 'We now have to see to connecting national and local police beyond the NCBs to I-24/7 in order to realize the full potential of this new police communications system.'

Secretary General Ronald K. Noble said. 'The decisions we took at this conference will further enhance police cooperation at the operational level within Africa and also between Africa and the other INTERPOL regions. We strongly believe that INTERPOL should not only work towards offering support to police in crime areas that pose a global threat, but also support efforts to tackle crimes specific to a particular region.'

INTERPOL funding allowed recently for the training of 18 handlers of bomb-sniffing dogs from nine countries who will participate in security operations in Africa. Conference delegates agreed that this training programme should be expanded across Africa. INTERPOL also recently provided funding for planes for the Tanzanian Park Service to use in fighting environmental crime and the organization will soon appoint its first full time wildlife crime officer.

	INTERPOL launches African Regional Conference in Ghana. Major issue is enhanced police communication in the region
	Opening remarks by Ronald K. Noble, INTERPOL Secretary General
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