21 November 2008
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INTERPOL African Regional Conference opens as 186th country connected to I-24/7 system
Opening the three-day meeting in Arusha, President of the United Republic of Tanzania Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete said police throughout Africa needed to work together in order to overcome the challenges they face. 'Conflicts in our continent fuel criminality of various natures such as terrorism, illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons, human trafficking in all its aspects, illegal immigrants, illicit drugs, money laundering and the rest,' said President Kikwete. 'There is an urgent need for the reassessment of whether our police forces are properly organized and adequately equipped to deal with the new threats posed by transnational crime. Critical in this assessment is sorting out matters that impede co-operation among our police forces in Africa.' The conference started with the news that Somalia had just connected to the organization’s secure global police communications system, I-24/7, which means that all of INTERPOL’s 186 member countries are now using the system to access criminal databases such as stolen and lost travel documents, stolen vehicles and wanted fugitives. INTERPOL President Jackie Selebi welcomed the final connection as an important milestone for the organization, but highlighted the need for African countries to not just talk with each other, but to act together. 'We need to work together on projects to address criminality; we need to do this to survive. We need to work together in such a way that we make criminality shrink by our daily activities,' said President Selebi. 'As I speak to you now, in Namibia, Angola, Botswana and Zimbabwe an operation is underway. Police are working outside of their boundaries, working outside of their jurisdictions, but working together. This is the kind of co-operation we need to see happen throughout all of Africa.' With all countries now connected to I-24/7, a key issue is how INTERPOL’s National Central Bureaus can expand access to the system to frontline officers at strategic locations; for example, to give border control officers access to INTERPOL’s database on stolen and lost travel documents. Four African countries have already extended access, with nearly 20 other countries currently in the process of implementing expansion. 'It is only when vital policing information is shared globally and instantly that law enforcement officers can operate effectively,' said INTERPOL’s Executive Director of Police Services Jean-Michel Louboutin. Delegates will also discuss fighting wildlife crime, issuing alerts for dangerous escaped prisoners and providing security support for the World Cup football championships in South Africa in 2010.
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