May 14, 2009 - The Regional Border Security Seminar organized by ICPAT in collaboration with the United Nations Counter Terrorism Executive Directorate (UNCTED) was held in Kampala, Uganda on May 13 and 14, 2009. The Seminar was open to IGAD member states that were represented by officials from ministries of foreign affairs, law enforcement and counter terrorism agencies, and customs authorities. It focused on identifying ways and means of better managing the open spaces that marked most of the borders of IGAD member states. The meeting was called also to take stock of what IGAD members states were doing to implement the border control provisions of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373 that dealt with countering terrorism in the wake of the attack on the World Trade Center in New York in 2001. The UN was represented by Ambassador Mike Smith, Director of the UNCTED. The Seminar was structured in the following way: - national briefs from IGAD member states on measures taken to strengthen border control and implement UNSCR 1373. - contribution by experts from the region on community policing, interdepartmental coordination, cross-border economic initiatives and experiences from field research along the IGAD land borders - presentations by intergovernmental organizations - INTERPOL, World Customs Organization and the International Organization of Migration on tools available to better manage open spaces along borders. As the Seminar came to a close participants observed that in open spaces, border management requires the effective employment of the philosophy and strategy of community police with working links with governmental institutions at provincial/central links and the development of intra agency, intra-agency and cross border cooperation. They called on ICPAT , among other things, to develop Guidelines to be used by Governments on better management of open spaces along the border. They also requested ICPAT to: i. Collate best practices on Community policing and Plan and implement training programs for border security officials to spread and deepen the use of the philosophy and strategy of community policing. ii. To plan and implement training programs for border security officials to encourage the development of National Border management strategies. (ICPAT Information)