Workshop on Public-Private Partnership for Prevention of Dangerous Substance Trafficking through Logistics, Courier and Air Cargo Services & Training on SINCB GRIDS Intelligence tools for Drug Law Enforcement and Regulatory Officers of Thailand
23-24 May 2023, Bangkok, Thailand - The International Narcotics Control Board's (INCB) Global Rapid Interdiction of Dangerous Substances (GRIDS) Programme successfully organized two back-to-back events, namely the workshop on voluntary public-private partnerships for the prevention of dangerous substance trafficking through logistics, couriers and air cargo services, and the training on SINCB GRIDS intelligence tools for drug law enforcement and regulatory officers of Thailand.
The first workshop, held on 23 May 2023 in Bangkok, aimed to share experiences of Governments, companies/ non-governmental entities and industry associations committed to voluntary cooperation for the prevention of misuse of logistics, courier, and air cargo services for dangerous substance trafficking; to discuss potential strategies for collaboration and cooperation between Governments and their private sector partners; and to facilitate collaboration and information sharing between public and private sectors to develop effective prevention strategies. The workshop was attended by 37 representatives including 20 officers from 4 Government agencies and 10 participants from 5 private sectors of Thailand.
Representatives from governments shared their observations on the trends in dangerous substance trafficking and misuse of legitimate logistics, couriers and air-cargo services; the various modalities of information sharing with the private sector; and examples of successful interdiction of dangerous substances. Participants from the private sector highlighted their efforts in ensuring that the customers used their services follow their security procedure, thereby preventing any dangerous substances from being trafficked through their services.
The workshop concluded with the adoption of 6 practical recommendations to be implemented by participants, both from Government and private sectors
The training on SINCB GRIDS intelligence tool held on 24 May 2023 in Bangkok, with participation of 20 drug law enforcement and regulatory officers of Thailand aimed to provide officers with an opportunity to enhance their capacities to operate IONICS and GRIDS intelligence HD and to develop networks and skills for international operation cooperation related to NPS, non-medical synthetic opioids.
During the event, the GRIDS Regional Technical Officer provided provided training sessions on Project ION Incident Communication System (IONICS) and the GRIDS Intelligence HD tool to support domestic and international trafficking investigations, together with practical exercises using IONICS and GRIDS Intelligence HD utilizing state-of-the-art targeting tools to transform IONICS information into actionable intelligence for daily operations and risk profiling.
After these workshop and training event, the GRIDS team had a visit to the International Narcotics Control College (INCC) and Safe Mekong Coordination Centre (SMCC) in Chiang Saen, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand under management of the Office on Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) of Thailand to explore potential cooperation opportunities between GRIDS and INCC in the coming time.
The Board's Global Rapid Interdiction of Dangerous Substances (GRIDS) Programme and Project ION and OPIOIDS Project support Governments' capacity to respond to changing trafficking, illicit manufacture, marketing and sales of NPS, non-medical synthetic opioids and fentanyl-related substances by providing real-time communication, facilitating information exchange and intelligence development that interdict distribution of dangerous substances.
These events were made possible through generous support from Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Click here to learn more about the GRIDS Programme
Click here to learn more about the OPIOIDS Project
Click here to learn more about the Project ION