Representatives from regional law enforcement and security organisations have taken the first in a series of actions towards establishing a global data-sharing model for law enforcement. The important step was agreed at the 7th INTERPOL Dialogue on an Effective Multilateral Policing Architecture against Global Threats, hosted by the Gulf Cooperation Council-POL with the support of the United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Interior.
In a joint declaration adopted after the two-day meeting (25-26 October), Dialogue members agreed to work with their member countries towards the goal of establishing a global model – to identify channels of communication, set data-sharing standards and foster cooperation.
Regional police information systems have developed and expanded significantly over the past decade, often as part of broader regional integration efforts.
Coupled with the dramatic increase in police data over the same period, officers today are presented with an unprecedented amount of information shared through a growing number of systems that are not always aligned.
The Dialogue was created in this context, to reap the benefits of an increasingly rich data landscape while mitigating the risk of vital intelligence falling through the gaps.
“A fragmented security and policing architecture is a risk to our respective mandates,” said Jürgen Stock, INTERPOL Secretary General. “It creates obstacles to information sharing, makes our response to criminal threats slower and simply undermines good police work.
“But if we design the landscape right, the next decade could see the richest and most effective police communication infrastructure ever available to law enforcement.”
Global Policing Goals
Representatives from regional law enforcement and security organisations were also updated on the ongoing review of INTERPOL’s Global Policing Goals, which reflect global law enforcement priorities in alignment with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
“The Global Policing Goals are an asset for all police cooperation actors, reflecting what we are, and what we bring to global security,” said Secretary General Stock. “They must also address the threats we seek to counter, promoting policing as an agent for global peace and growth.”
In Abu Dhabi, Dialogue members agreed that effective implementation of the Goals would be the focus of efforts over the next year, through identifying and tracking individual and joint endeavours.
Participating Dialogue entities: The Arab Interior Ministers’ Council (AIMC), the African Union Mechanism for Police Cooperation (AFRIPOL), the Police Community of the Americas (AMERIPOL), the Caribbean Community Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS), the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol), the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), the Gulf Cooperation Council-POL (GCCPOL), the Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO-RATS) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
