INTERPOL Meeting Addresses Transnational Crime in West Africa

On June 8, 2026, Inspector General of Police Olatunji Disu led the 11th Meeting of INTERPOL National Central Bureaus in Abuja, focusing on regional cooperation against transnational crime. The meeting included representatives from 16 West African countries, highlighting threats such as human trafficking, arms smuggling, drug trafficking, cyber fraud, and money laundering. Disu emphasized the need for real-time intelligence sharing through the expansion of INTERPOL’s I-24/7 secure communication system to border control points. He reaffirmed Nigeria's commitment to Project GEMINI for managing stolen travel documents and the West African Police Information System (WAPIS) for data sharing. The IGP outlined three priorities: universal access to INTERPOL databases, rapid joint operations, and building trust among member states for effective information sharing. The meeting concluded with a call for actionable commitments to proactively disrupt criminal activities.

Key Points: • INTERPOL meeting in Abuja focused on enhancing regional cooperation against transnational crime. • IGP Disu emphasized the need for real-time intelligence sharing at border control points. • Nigeria committed to Project GEMINI and expanding access to INTERPOL databases.