INTERPOL Project Blue Pacific Team Visit

The INTERPOL HQ Project Blue Pacific Training Needs Assessment team began their Pacific tour in Fiji yesterday, where they met with the Acting Commissioner of Police Juki Fong Chew at Police Headquarters.

The team consists of Senior Project Manager Mr Rastislav Sasik, Mr Rabin Basnyat – Digital Forensics Analyst and Mr Altaf Mayar Regional Product Deployment Officer IT Customer Services sub Directorate Information System and Technology Directorate of INTERPOL (IS).

On the 1st day of January 2024, INTERPOL launched Project Blue Pacific in strategic partnership with the Pacific Islands Chiefs of Police (PICP), supported by the Australian Federal Police , the New Zealand Police and the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office/National Crime Agency.

The three-year initiative will support the enhancement of policing capabilities for ten Pacific Region countries consisting of Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu. The launch of this project will build upon regional and domestic security interests that has previously seen five Pacific Island countries join INTERPOL since 2017, including Solomon Islands (2017), Vanuatu and Kiribati (2018), Micronesia (2021) and most recently Palau (2023).

The expected outcomes of the project include the creation of the sustainable use of INTERPOL resources to enhance information sharing in the region and globally.

With Fiji being the oldest regional member since 1971, the Acting Commissioner of Police Juki Fong Chew said the Fiji Police Force stands ready to render support towards the Project.

Sentiments supported by the visiting INTERPOL team, whereby they stated, Fiji was not only one of the beneficiaries but was also earmarked to play a leading role, in supporting the implementation of the three year project aimed at establishing a formal network in the region, reinforcing regional capabilities and streamlining coordination and collaboration.

The Project Blue Pacific emphasizes three key streams; i) Capacity Building and Training ii) INTERPOL Policing Capabilities iii) Regional Cooperation The team is expected to visit Samoa, Vanuatu and Tonga in the coming days.