Barbados, October 3-5, 2023: The United States Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) Bridgetown and CARICOM IMPACS’ Joint Regional Communication Center (JRCC) hosted enforcement and customs policy decision makers from seven (7) countries for a three-day Technical Exchange to improve collaboration and enhance operating procedures.

INL’s implementer, Hive International, supports INL and the Regional Security System (RSS) with Customs Enforcement Advisors who provided facilitation for the event.:

Participants conducted a comprehensive review of regional and local operational procedures, identified challenges and information gaps, and recommended process improvements and solutions for more effective collaboration on time-sensitive target referrals and watchlists using APIS data. The technical exchange enabled INL and the JRCC to collect critical feedback on ways to improve the sharing and consumption of information and provided essential feedback to the JRCC to better inform its risk profiles and referrals.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), The International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Airport Communication Project (AIRCOP) representatives also attended the exchange and provided valuable insight into targeting procedures and information sharing.