The deputy head of mission presenting the items to the Interior Minister as the CGI looks on
The Danish Government, through the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), has presented a vehicle and IT equipment to the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) to strengthen its capacity to combat irregular migration.
The items were, a 4×4 Mitsubishi Pajero, 20 laptop computers, five desktop computers, five uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs), three forensic magnifiers, 320 magnifiers, a digital camera and two printers.
According to the Danish Government, the presentation formed part of its “Strengthening Border and Migration Management in Ghana (SMMIG)” project to support the Government of Ghana (GoG) in strengthening her institutional and operational capacities to manage irregular migration flows.
The Minister for the Interior, Ambrose Dery, who received the items in Accra on Wednesday, said the support was an example of a practical cooperation that existed between the Government of Denmark and Ghana.
He noted that securing the border and effectively managing migration were extremely important for the country, and that the presentation would support the GoG’s efforts in that regard.
“Internal peace, public safety and security and social stability are necessary components for development,” he added.
The minister, on behalf of GoG, thanked the Danish Government for their kind support and indicated that the support would help advance the mission of the GIS through the implementation of the SMMIG project.
The Deputy Head of Mission in-charge of Cooperation, Birgit La Cour Madsen, commended the GIS and the implementing agency, ICMPD, for making the ceremony possible in spite of the pandemic.
She said that the SMMIG project, which was scheduled to end in November this year, had been extended to the next 12 months. This, she said, had also allowed some amendments to the project to include the provision of personal protective equipment (PPE) and the capacity building of 300 personnel of the GIS to manage travellers with any health related issue.
The Deputy Head of Mission, urged Ghanaians not to only make the continuous and collective effort to fight and eradicate Covid-19 but to also ensure that the 2020 elections were conducted in the spirit of fairness and peace, which she said had become the hallmark of Ghanaian democracy.
On his part, the Comptroller General of Immigration (CGI), Mr. Kwame Asuah Takyi, expressed gratitude to the Danish Government for the support and assured them that the items would be put to good use to fight irregular migration.
He noted that the project has so far helped in strengthening the capacity of the personnel of the service in the areas of intelligence gathering, information exchange and document inspection.