The conference expects to work closer with governments, law enforcement partners, and other social partners to maintain safety and security in the region and to tackle the upsurge in the trafficking of firearms and narcotics, a statement from the Guyana Police Force (GPF) said.
The GPF hosted the annual conference which began on Wednesday, and which saw the presence of Heads of Special Branch from member countries.
It was held under the theme “Securing Regional Security through Improved Techniques for Monitoring Economic and Social Stability”.
The statement said that at the opening ceremony on Monday, Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee pointed out that the heads of the various security agencies were now operating in an environment far removed from that which obtained years ago and called on them to quickly develop an understanding of it. “Minister Rohee posited that there was now a multiplicity of challenges being faced by security agencies in the region and urged that they look at the global environment in order to have a better understanding of these challenges that impact on the security of the region. These, he said, included the current global economic crisis and its effect on unemployment, tourism and crime in the region; terrorism; drug trafficking; and organised crime,” the statement said.
The minister encouraged the security heads, as they pursue their individual and collective endeavours at the national and regional level, to take into consideration the extant geo-political formations that have emerged within recent times while emphasizing that many law enforcement agencies of the region were currently going through a process of reform to meet the new challenges, according to the statement.
During the deliberations, delegates from throughout the region and also observers from metropolitan areas and other intelligence agencies brought ideas to improve law enforcement and intelligence gathering capacities, it added.
The next Annual Con- ference of Heads of Special Branch of the Caribbean is scheduled to be held in Bermuda where it is expected that deliberations on the numerous resolutions tabled at this year’s Conference will continue. Guyana had hosted the conference in 1995.
