Kigali: With 3.3 million USD in financial support from the Government of Japan, UNOPS will deliver and install border control equipment in five of the East Africa Community (EAC) countries: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. This project will provide baggage X-ray screening, patrolling boats, portable Raman spectrometers, patrolling cars, and drug detection kits to Rwanda [Burundi].
Supply chain security plays a key role in boosting a region’s economic development. However, these five EAC countries face several obstacles to their supply chain. Threats of terrorism and violent extremism, as well as the trade of small arms and light weapons and explosives, challenge the economic development and integration in East Africa. Trafficking of illegal drugs, such as heroin, is another major challenge across these countries’ borders.
To fight against these insecurities and promote economic growth, the five EAC countries requested the Government of Japan to provide technical cooperation on trade facilitation and border control. To complement the successful implementation of “Project on Capacity Development for Trade Facilitation and Border Control in East Africa (2017-2021)” by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) will procure and install, respectively, border control and surveillance equipment. In doing so, the capacities of customs departments of revenue authorities in trade facilitation and supply chain security will be enhanced.
The Government of Japan has been supporting the One Stop Border Post projects in EAC since 2007 through JICA. This new project will counter internationally organized crimes, supply-chain insecurity, and the increasing global threats of terrorism at EAC borders. With the support and expertise of JICA, this project will pave the way for the necessary further enhancements to obtaining efficient and effective border control. (End).