Uganda Director of INTERPOL and International Relations, AIGP Fred Yiga has today opened USALAMA IV after Action Review workshop at Imperial Resort Beach in Entebbe.
The two day workshop is running under the theme ” United’ in combating transnational crime.”
About 50 delegates from Southern Africa regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (SARPCCO) and Eastern African Police Chiefs Cooperation (EAPCCO) are taking part in the ongoing meeting.
The workshop brings together different Stakeholders, from member countries of EAPCCO, SAPPCO, INTERPOL, European Union , Regional Center on Small Arms (RESCA).
“Let’s not take this meeting for granted, what brings us together is exchange of ideas, the fact that we are here organizing, the criminals are also somewhere planning how to destabilize security ” Yiga remarked.
He added “that the effects of criminals have hurt our people caused discomfort, something we must address.”
Yiga urged the participants for more cooperation through information sharing so as to bring to an end transnational and organized crimes in Africa.
“Porous borders need urgent attention, so we need to train our INTERPOL staff and give them skills on how to fight the cross border crimes. ” Yiga noted.
He also noted that there’s a need for establishment of regional centers of excellence so as to exchange skills on how to go about the mushrooming crimes especially in Information Technology.
Gideon Kimilu the INTERPOL Bureau Nairobi in his address noted that “operation USALAMA was born out of the need to defeat organized transnational crimes networks operating in the two regions and since the first operation was carried out in 2013, the results have been very impressive to the extent that police chief’s of SARPCCO AND EAPCCO have had their respective annual general meetings and passed successful resolutions with which impressive results were registered in all crime areas”
“We have had significant seizures of hard drugs which continue to threaten the lives of young people recovery of stolen motor vehicles , rescue of hundreds of human trafficking victim’s and arrest of ivory dealers”. Kimilu noted.
He added that “all these crimes have serious socioeconomic impact to our citizenry and their eradication is key to the realization of peace and security in the two regions “.
