Immigration Service receives IT gadgets to strengthen border, migration management 

The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) has received laptops and other IT-related gadgets to strengthen border and migration management to help improve migration governance. The items, which include a multifunctional printer, photocopier, SMART television, air conditioners, CCTV cameras and furniture, were procured under the project Strengthening Border and Migration Management in Ghana (SMMIG). The 28 different items in various quantities cost pound 350, 000 and are targeted at helping the GIS to combat document fraud, enhance intelligence gathering and analysis, strengthen investigations and prosecution and improve cyber security. The SMMIG project is funded by the Government of Denmark and implemented by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD). The project has built the capacity of some officers across the nation and the equipment is to support the trained officers at the 19 administrative regions of the Ghana Immigration Service. Mr Kwame Asuah Takyi, Comptroller General, G IS, in his address, said migration governance had become a key accelerator of sustainable development and achievement of Agenda 2030, therefore, concerted efforts of all stakeholders in the migration management space were needed. He commended the donor partners and said collaboration and building lasting relationships were important to effect changes.'We are most grateful for the technical support you provided in the successful execution of all the activities under this project. And I want to assure you that this equipment being handed over to us today shall be put to good use,' Mr Takyi said.Madam Vibeke Sandholm Pedersen, Deputy Ambassador of Denmark and Head of Cooperation, said GIS collected and processed sensitive traveler information daily, therefore, the SMMIG project had established and operationalised a dedicated cybersecurity unit within the Service to ensure safety.She said the Danish funding through the SMMIG project had facilitated several key initiatives, including enhancing the capacity of the GIS legal document to investigate, prosecute, and secure convictions on document fraud and other migration-related cases.Madam Naana Eyiah, Deputy Minister for the Interior, said, cyber security was no longer a peripheral concern because border management systems, databases, and communication networks had all been vulnerable to cyber-attacks.She said security services around the world faced cyber threats, cybercrime, attacks, and espionage and there was the need to leverage ICT and particularly the Internet for the safety, prosperity, growth and security of societies.Source: Ghana News Agency