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The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), through its flagship the Countering Terrorist Travel (‘CT Travel’) Programme, and the Airport Communication Programme (AIRCOP) implemented by the , organized the second annual regional Informal Working Group (IWG) meeting for over 70 delegates representing law enforcement, counter-terrorism, security, and civil aviation agencies from 16 West African countries and 4 observer States. 

Launched in December 2021, the West Africa regional Informal Working Group (IWG) aims to foster regional cooperation and exchange of information among participating Member States to support the detection of terrorists and other criminals. The goal is to ensure that Member States share a common language on the use of Advance Passenger Information (API) and Passenger Name Record (PNR) data and have access to a forum for peer-to-peer support to enable learning from each other. 

Speaking to participants about the importance of cross-border partnerships in countering terrorism, Ms. Christine Bradley, Chief of Countering Terrorist Travel Section at UNOCT, noted: “This IWG can be used to raise specific challenges you may be facing, as well as share best practices, and lessons learned. Indeed, we hope that this group will continue to provide a platform for support, one where you can engage with each other and speak openly about the challenges you are facing”.

The IWG meeting allowed participants to gain a better understanding of the efforts being made by Member States across the region through discussions on existing API and PNR capabilities and challenges faced in establishing operational systems. The European Union (EU) regional cooperation framework on passenger data serves as the role model for the initiative and the EU has provided financial support to establish the regional IWG.

Key points of discussion at the meeting also included legal frameworks, operational modalities for establishment of Passenger Information Units, engagement and connectivity with the transport industry, technology and innovation, and technical assistance available to support the Member States to strengthen their detection capacities, including through the CT Travel Programme.

“Our presence in this year’s meeting continues to show our collective commitment in implementing the CT Travel Programme in our respective countries. We are encouraged to keep up such commitment because the movement of foreign terrorist fighters within the region remains the major conduit through which the threat of terrorism spreads.”, said Mr. Ansumana Idriss, Director General of the Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority, who served as the inaugural rotation chair of the West Africa IWG (2022 - 2023).

Background

The  Countering Terrorist Travel (‘CT Travel’) Programme was launched in 2019 to support Member States respond to the growing threat posed by the movement of foreign terrorist fighters.  The Programme is a global initiative that aims to build Member States capacities to prevent, detect, investigate and prosecute terrorist offences and other serious crimes, including their related travel, by collecting and analyzing passenger data, both API and PNR, in line with United Nations Security Council resolutions, international standards and best practices and human rights principles.

A flagship global initiative of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), the Programme currently supports 64 beneficiary Member States and is implemented with the support of six partners , the I, the , the , and the . 

AIRCOP is implemented by UNODC in partnership with INTERPOL and the World Customs Organization, as part of the UNODC Passenger and Cargo Border Team. It aims at strengthening the capacities of international airports to target and intercept high-risk passengers, cargo, and mail, as a contribution to the fight against illicit drugs and other illicit commodities (such as wildlife products or falsified medical products), terrorism-related threats (such as arms or potential foreign terrorist fighters), trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants. Moreover, it aims at facilitating communication and coordination between origin, transit, and destination countries to disrupt cross-border illicit flows and criminal networks. AIRCOP is active in more than 40 countries in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East, South-Eastern Europe, and South-East Asia.