Bangladesh: Training fosters inter-agency cooperation to tackle fisheries crime

                                                                                                              

Chittagong/12-14 March 2017: Officials from Bangladesh's customs and law enforcement agencies came together in March earlier this year for a special training focusing on fisheries crime in the trade supply chain to give a fresh thematic impetus to UNODC's Container Control Programme (CCP).

The training was aimed to promote and enhance knowledge and understanding of the participating officials on fisheries-related crimes, as well as foster cooperation between fisheries departments and the private sector. 

Representatives from the Bangladesh Customs, the Fishery Department and the Chittagong-based CCP Port Control Unit Discussions held elaborate discussions on areas such as international and national legal frameworks, fisheries statistics, methods and impact of fishery crime, corruption and monitoring control and surveillance.

A visit to the Chittagong fishing port was also organised, wherein representatives were taken on board a trawler fishing vessel.                                                                                                                                         

At present, the CCP is operational in 38 countries and has initiated activities in a further 16. Since its inception in 2004, CCP has established more than 60 inter-agency Port Control Units consisting of customs and law enforcement agencies, leading to significant detections of forest, wildlife and environmental crime proceeds, drugs, precursor chemicals, strategic goods, medicines, cigarettes, intellectual property rights/counterfeit goods and weapons.

CCP plans to conduct similar training courses in 12 other countries across South Asia, Southeast Asia, East and West Africa.

The fisheries' crime component of CCP is financially supported by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD).