The United States Embassy, through the US Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) and the World Customs Organization (WCO), conducted a five-day training course with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU).
A release yesterday from the US Embassy said that the training will support Guyana’s efforts to interdict illicit firearms and ammunition at major ports of entry and border controls. This is the second phase of Project Bolt, a joint programme between INL and the WCO.
Throughout the week, participants received practical training with presentations from experts from the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, U.S. Customs Border and Protection, INTERPOL, and the WCO.
Training topics encompassed firearms tracing, methods of illicit export, global and regional trends in small arms and light weapons detection, weapons identification and their components, forensic handling, vehicle search techniques, and emerging threats. The release added that the US Embassy and INL also delivered specialized equipment – including density meters, metal detection wands, and tool kits – to the GRA.
At the training’s opening ceremony on November 4, Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. Adrienne Galanek highlighted the cooperation between the United States and Guyana to combat illicit firearms trafficking and ensure stable and secure communities in the Caribbean.
Galanek said that the US Government works closely with local and regional partners, through the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, to fund initiatives like Project Bolt that deepen security partnership with the Government of Guyana, while also directly tackling the illicit proliferation of firearms and ammunition in the region.
She added: “the United States believes strongly that we must take an active role in addressing this shared responsibility and remains committed to supporting Guyana’s front-line Customs officers with the necessary tools and knowledge to do their jobs effectively.”
