After five years and half of implementation, the project Sharaka, which means “partnership” in Arabic, ended on 31 January 2023. A closing ceremony was organised in Algiers on 30 and 31 January in the presence of the Director General of the Directorate General of Algerian National Security (DGSN), Mr. Farid BENCHEIKH, the CT Director of INTERPOL, Mr. Greg HINDS, and the Ambassador of the EU Delegation to Algeria, Mr. Thomas ECKERT.

The “Sharaka” project was a regional counter-terrorism project implemented by INTERPOL since 2017 in Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia and Palestine. It supported partner countries to better detect and intercept organised crime and terrorist individuals or groups through the use of INTERPOL technologies, capacity building and police operations.

The project has connected frontline agencies at airports, seaports and national borders to the INTERPOL’s secure global police communications system (I-24/7). This has enabled the partner countries to share intelligence in real time and to access INTERPOL global criminal databases.

The project has delivered some very concrete results:

• 46 border-crossing points are now connected to INTERPOL databases and can operate screening in real time.
• 42 national law enforcement agencies have direct access to INTERPOL Criminal Databases (I-24/7) for investigation purposes.
• 7 National Central Bureaus (NBCs) – one in each country –are equipped with INTERPOL video conferencing system, enabling online training and secured police cooperation.
• More than 800 officers have been trained.
• 36 training activities were organised on various topics such as INTERPOL notices and diffusions, international cooperation, criminal intelligence analysis, passenger profiling, etc.

Thanks to the project, the searches against INTERPOL Databases has increased by more than 500% in the MENA region. The contributions of South Partner Countries to the INTERPOL databases has also increased by 65%.

The closing ceremony was organised in Algiers. Participants visited the Airport Houari Boumedienne, which has successfully implemented the screening solution (FIND), thanks to the project.  Automated and systematic checks of Stolen Lost Travel Documents (VISA, ID Card, and Travel Documents) are now being performed on a daily basis at Algiers International airport, but also in its seaport and in 36 National Border Crossing points, including the ones with the sub Saharan region (Mali and Niger).