Region Five News
Region Five Vice President Visits Africa
By City of University City
Oct 5, 2007 - 1:41:15 PM

A sixteen-day trip to Africa had a specific purpose: to share best law enforcement practices. But U. City Deputy Police Chief Ernest Green said he got more out of the exchange than he gave. For his first visit to the continent, Green was the featured guest of two retired U.S. FBI agents who began the annual program in 2003.

“This was by far one of the best experiences of my life.” Green said. “It was humbling, but challenging. Exciting, but thought provoking. It was much more that I expected. What a beautiful country! I went on a safari and I will probably never want to go to a zoo again. This trip, along with participant interactions, gave me a totally different perspective on policing. They do an awful lot with so little. I taught, but I was truly a student.”

The September 7-22 criminal investigating conference was held at the International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) in Gaborone, Botswana. It included 30 participants from eight African countries: Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Gabon, Djibouti, Comoros, Botswana and Madagascar. All represented the best of their agencies. Most are in upper management positions. Twenty-seven of the thirty participants spoke French as their native language, a challenge overcome by automated translators.

In 2000, governments of the U.S. and Botswana signed a bilateral agreement to establish the ILEA in Gaborone to promote international cooperation against crime. It followed a successful model already in use by Hungary and Thailand. The main component of ILEA is the six-week Law Enforcement Executive Development Program. Here, international participants share ideas on combating transnational criminal activity, supporting democracy by stressing the rule of law in international and domestic police operations, and raising the professionalism of all crime-fighting officers. Courses concentrate on counter-terrorism, anti-corruption, financial crimes, border security, drug enforcement, and firearms.

Deputy Police Chief Green, the only African American participant, was selected from thousands of qualified U.S. law enforcement professionals. His topics were: Excellence in Police Leadership, Integrity in Policing, Community Policing, Major Case Management, and Incident Command Systems. Green has been on the U. City Police force since 1987.

Editor's note: Mississippi Chapter President Beverly Harris-Williams will represent the FBI at ILEA in mid-October.