Islamabad, Pakistan: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) of Pakistan and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) jointly organised a handover ceremony at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad on 10th March 2021. Within the framework of the Integrated Border Management (IBM) in the Silk Routes Countries project, funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented by ICMPD, the FIA was given 100 books on Basic Knowledge Document Recognition and 100 magnifiers for FIA’s front line Immigration Officers.

The Government of Pakistan and ICMPD signed a cooperation agreement in November 2020 which confirms their joint commitment to promote legal migration and mobility; support integration of Pakistani migrants abroad; fight discrimination, racism, Islamophobia and xenophobia; strengthen the positive impact of migration on the development of Pakistan; enhance border management; and prevent irregular migration, including the smuggling of migrants and the trafficking of human beings.

Against this backdrop, the FIA and ICMPD organised Basic-Level Document Security training sessions for 80 FIA officers working at the First and Second line of control at four of the biggest and busiest airports in Pakistan, namely: Allama Iqbal International Airport, Bacha Khan International Airport, Islamabad International Airport and Jinnah International Airport in September-October 2020. The training sessions were delivered with the aim of strengthening the capacity of the FIA for effective border management, as well as curbing irregular migration, trafficking in human beings and the smuggling of migrants. The Books on Basic Knowledge Document Security and magnifiers will aid the trained officers in detecting fraudulent documents at air Border Crossing Points (BCPs) and will also be used by the FIA Academy for training purposes.

ICMPD is an international organization with 18 Member States. It was established in 1993 and currently active in more than 90 countries worldwide. Its Mission is to make migration and mobility of people orderly, safe and regular. ICMPD also acts as the Secretariat for the Budapest Process, which is a platform for inter-regional dialogue on migration stretching from Europe to the Silk Routes regions. ICMPD and FIA have jointly been working to enhance the capacities of the FIA - and in particular the FIA Academy - in order to establish it as a training Centre of Excellence.