The GoGIN project, represented by Bertrand Demez and Eric Glotin, participated in the workshop “Building a sustainable regional training capacity for maritime law enforcement”, co-organised by Interpol, the UNODC, and the US State Department (Accra, 25 to 28 February 2020). The “education/training” strategy was at the centre of presentations and talks.
The opening session brought together speeches from the UNODC, Interpol, the representative from the US embassy in Ghana, the Director of the ICC and the Ghanaian Police Commissioner.
Following this, in order to define the strategic element of the seminar, the acting Director of the ICC and the Executive Director of the Centre for Maritime Law and Security in Africa (CEMLAWS, Accra) moderated the discussions and presentations. Derrick Attachie, Head of the Education and Training Division of the ICC, recalled the matrix of needs initiated by the GoGIN Project and developed by the ICC and the UNODC with the support of regional maritime universities, regional maritime centres, the national institutions of Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Cape Verde, as well as financial support from Norway. The ISMI, RMU, ECCAS and FCWC training plans illustrated this matrix. Speakers then presented various initiatives already underway, initiated by the UNODC, Interpol, US Coast Guards, the IMO, Denmark and the European Union. Participants also learned about the regional security system implemented by the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and its training component.
Throughout the working groups (26 to 28 February), participants established education/training priorities for each country in the YA, thereby updating the ICC matrix.
To conclude, the following developments should be highlighted:
- The judiciary (police and justice) is from now on officially involved in strategic planning in terms of maritime security education and training,
- TESS was mentioned as a tool capable of helping with the human resource management of trained and instructed personnel,
- The “operational” bridgehead of the YA (ICC and CRES) will be identified by all judicial actors from now on.