US embassy cable - 04ACCRA2282

UNCLAS ACCRA 002282 
 
SIPDIS 
 
INL PASS TO ERENI ROESS, DOJ/ICITAP FOR ERIC BEINHART, 
LAGOS FOR CLAYTON WHEELER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, SNAR, GH, narcotics 
SUBJECT: INL FUNDING BOOSTS GHANA'S COUNTER-NARCOTICS 
CAPACITY 
 
REF: ACCRA 02138 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. Using INL funding totalling nearly $80,000, DOJ/ICITAP 
contractors conducted a four-week counter-narcotics training 
in Accra for officers from the Ghana Narcotics Control Board 
(NCB), Ghana Police Service (GPS), Ghana Immigration Service 
(GIS), the Customs and Excise Protective Service (CEPS), and 
the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA). The 
train-the-trainer program, conducted in two 2-week sessions, 
finished on November 12 and was declared a highly successful 
training by both USG and GoG officials. The launch of the 
training on October 18, attended by the DCM, received 
extensive press coverage. While the training was in progress, 
a high-profile narcotics case was prosecuted (see reftel) and 
another drug bust was made at the airport with the assistance 
of INL-funded equipment. End summary. 
 
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COMBATTING DRUG SMUGGLING AT PORTS AND BORDERS 
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2. On October 18, the DCM launched a four-week, INL-funded 
counter-narcotics training, led by DOJ/ICITAP contractors 
Larry Ringler and Robert Clarke. The Chief Director from the 
Ministry of Interior, Mr. Edwin Barnes, also addressed the 
trainees and press members covering the launch. Later, in a 
private (closed to press) classroom address to the officers, 
the Chief Director urged the officers to work together to 
combat the problem of narcotics in Ghana and to set aside 
occasional inter-agency differences that may arise. He 
stressed the need for the Ghanaian law enforcement agencies 
not to let divisions over funding and resources encroach on 
the overall goal of eliminating the smuggling of illicit 
narcotics in and through Ghana. 
 
3. The training took place in two 2-week sessions. The first 
session, consisting of mid- to senior-level officers of the 
NCB, CEPS, GIS, CEPS and GCAA was a 'train-the-trainers' 
program in which participants were taught how to transfer 
skills and knowledge to junior officers of their respective 
agencies. The second phase of the training, conducted from 
November 1-12, was a basic skills course and consisted of 
junior level officers. Students from the first iteration of 
the program co-taught the basic skills training with the two 
ICITAP coordinators. Both trainings consisted of classroom 
lectures, practical exercises, and field visits to the 
airport. 
 
4. This training, which focused specifically on drug 
interdiction at Ghana's airport (and, secondarily, seaports), 
complements material assistance provided last year under the 
same contract. In 2003, the USG donated two itemizers worth 
$80,000 to the NCB to be used for drug detection efforts at 
Kotoka International Airport. In October 2004, the Executive 
Secretary of the NCB, Col. Isaac Akuoko, told PolOff that the 
 
SIPDIS 
itemizers had helped to capture another potential drug 
smuggler transiting through the airport. 
 
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COMMENT 
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5. The ICITAP trainers, the NCB (which served as the lead GoG 
agency for coordinating the training), and the training 
participants all regarded this program as highly successful. 
In an outbrief with Ambassador Yates, Mr. Ringler and Mr. 
Clarke advocated further support for Ghana's law enforcement 
agencies, noting that the political will for combatting 
narcotics in Ghana is strong and that law enforcement 
officers display enthusiasm and motivation for this mission 
in spite of a fundamental lack of human and material 
resources. The trainers also noted that the Ghanaians 
expressed interest in a canine drug detection course. Further 
courses in basic skills training, airport operations, and 
drug interdiction could also be useful in Ghana. The 
prosecution of Ghana's largest drug bust and the October 
interception of narcotics using USG-funded equipment, both of 
which took place during the period of this successful 
training, indicate the continued positive impact of INL 
funding in Ghana. End comment. 
YATES