The Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kwame Asuah-Takyi has underscored the need for international collaboration in countering security threats across the sub-region.

A statement issued in Accra said Mr Asuah-Takyi made the remarks at a workshop for senior military officers from the Nigerian Armed Forces Command and Staff College who were on a study tour to the GIS.

The squad is made up of officers from Nigeria, South Africa, Togo and Tanzania.

Mr Asuah-Takyi also noted that security was vital for prosperity and economic development, thus “no government can afford not to invest in its security agencies".

He bemoaned the level of insecurity at our maritime borders, where he indicated that “the Gulf of Guinea accounted for 43 per cent of maritime insecurity in the world”.

He said: “Piracy on high seas is on the ascendency which is greatly affecting international trade".

Deputy Comptroller-General of Immigration, Command Post and Operations (DCGI/OPS) Mr. Laud Afrifa in his presentation themed “Border Security and Collaboration with Sister Countries” shared on Ghana’s border security strategies, successes and challenges.

Mr Laud Afrifa advised that the fight against cybercrime should not be considered xenophobic.

Instead, the DCGI/OPS recommended that countries acknowledge that it was in their best interest to join hands in the fight against cross border crimes.

The participants were taken through the mandate, structure, functions and regulatory framework of the GIS.

The presentation also brought out the various threats at borders; the strategic responses to mitigate them; and the benefits of international collaboration in border management and the fight against cross border crimes.

On Covid-19, Mr. Afrifa said the pandemic further complicated the challenges of porous borders across West Africa, adding that, “even though there was a consensual closing of borders across West Africa, we all faced the menace of illegal migrants and the possibility of importing the virus through our borders".

He also shared Ghana’s success in intercepting and returning several of such immigrants through strengthened border patrols and rigorous checks at inland checkpoints across the country.

Leader of the Nigerian delegation, Director of Maritime Warfare, Armed Forces Command and Staff College in Jaji, Nigeria, Commodore Kehinde John Odubanjo affirmed the need for shared learning and intelligence in tackling security in the sub-region since we shared similar challenges.

Commodore Odubanjo was grateful to the GIS for the warm reception accorded them; and the sharing of experiences in border management and the fight against cross border crimes and hoped for continuous collaboration between Ghana and Nigeria.