Ambassador of the EU to Ghana, Irchad Razaaly making a presentation to the Deputy Minister of the Interior, Naana Eyiah while the Comptroller General and others look on.
The European Union has donated items worth €1 million to the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), as part of efforts to strengthen the operational capacity of the Service.
The support forms part of the EU’s framework of the Strengthening Border Security (SBS) Project in Ghana aimed at reducing irregular migration, human trafficking, smuggling of goods, cross border crimes amongst others.
The items included five Tornado motor bikes, 50 forensic magnifiers, five docuboxes with screens, and 10 docuboxes.
The EU Ambassador to Ghana, Irchad Razaaly, who presented the items at the headquarters of GIS in Accra last Friday, said the EU would continue to strengthen its partnership with Ghana in the fight against transnational organised crimes and border security.
He said the EU would also provide technical training, capacity building programmes to support law enforcement agencies in Ghana to acquire the needed knowledge, skills and tools to reinforce the fight against crime.
He further mentioned that apart from the gesture, the EU in the next phase of the SBS project in 2023 would provide ten laptops, two pick up vehicles and border patrol equipment to increase the operational capacity of GIS.
Deputy Minister of the Interior, Naana Ayiah, on behalf of the government expressed gratitude to the European Union for supporting government in an effort to sufficiently resource GIS to perform its role in securing the country’s borders.
She added that the gesture would also go a long way to support the country’s quest to ensure that the Service receives adequate resources to contribute to the global fight against terrorist attacks, money laundering, human trafficking, and drug trafficking among others.
She, however, urged management of GIS to maintain the items and use them effectively for their intended purposes.
Comptroller General of GIS, Kwame Asuah Takyi, who received the donation on behalf of the Service commended the EU and ICMPD for supporting the Service in diverse ways since 2016 despite the COVID-19 pandemic and the current global economic challenges.
He said, “The Ghana Immigration Service, over the years, has collaborated with the EU and selected countries all directed towards effective management of migration in Ghana. The items received today are a key arsenal in an all-out war against these global threats. This will strengthen border patrols, train frontline officers at national borders and other Command posts.”
He added that despite the successes chalked by the Service and commitment by government to resource them, GIS will do everything as part of the International community to fight crime, especially cross border crimes, as they look forward to more coordination and collaboration for better services.
By Ebenezer K. Amponsah