Police and border security forces are an integral part of the security sector, and – when subject to democratic control, oversight and the rule of law – they can make a valuable contribution to the provision of security and protection of human rights. DCAF works with police forces to promote democratic accountability, human rights and the principle of equality before the law. DCAF’s border security programme focuses on helping states move from confrontational defence-led border security structures to modern cooperative border security organisations.

Aims

• (Re-)developing legal and institutional frameworks for democratic oversight and accountability of police forces.
• Fostering service orientation, transparency and accountability of police forces, improving police forces’ respect for the rule of law and human rights, and mainstreaming gender issues.
• Strengthening the institutional capacity of police management structures, such as national ministries of the Interior.
• Contributing to the promulgation and implementation of EU’s integrated border management standards and assisting the participating states in Southeast Europe to create modern, EU-compatible border security organizations.
• Strengthening regional border police cooperation.

Types of work

• Needs assessment, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of programmes in the area of policing and border management.
• Policy advice and guidance, as well as technical assistance on request to police, border security forces, as well as their management structures (such as Ministries of the Interior).
• Training and capacity-building, including the development of training curricula and training courses for police and border security personnel.
• Development of knowledge products (handbooks, manuals), such as the Manual on Decision Making in Policing, Toolkit on Police Integrity,  tools on Police Reform and Gender, Border Management and Gender, etc.
• Networking. DCAF fosters the development of networks of senior police / border police officers and organizes a variety of fora, workshops, seminars and expert meetings where personnel of all levels, as well as top executives can exchange knowledge among themselves and with a wide range of stakeholders. As part of its border security programme, DCAF convenes annual conferences of the Ministers of the Interior of the participating states.

Who do we work with?

• Police forces
• Border security services and their executives
• Management structures, such as national Ministries of the Interior
• Professional associations, such as Southeast European Police Chiefs’ Association (SEPCA) and Southeast Europe Women Police Officers’ Network
• International and regional organizations (EU, OSCE, FRONTEX, UN)
• Civil society and the media

Milestones

2002

• DCAF launches Border Security Programme for Southeast Europe.

2005

• DCAF starts working with Palestinian police as part of a comprehensive security governance programme in the Occupied Palestinian territories.

2007

• DCAF becomes a principal implementation partner for the Police Cooperation Convention for Southeast Europe.

2008

• DCAF opens an office in Ljubljana (DCAF Ljubljana) to host the PCC Secretariat.

2011

• DCAF signs a Working Agreement with Frontex on cooperation in the field of border management.
• DCAF wins a shared mandate from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) for programmes in Bulgaria and Romania on Asylum, Migration and Human Trafficking.

2012

• DCAF, in cooperation with the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, launches a two-year project to modernise the system of human resources management in the Serbian Ministry of the Interior (MoI), and enhance strategic management and planning skills of the MoI mid- and senior level personnel.
• DCAF participates in the design of a programme for reforming the Tunisian Ministry of the Interior and the Tunisian police forces.
• DCAF receives a mandate from the SDC to design the Swiss Regional Police Cooperation Programme in the Western Balkans 2012-2016.

Current and recent projects

• DCAF Police Programme
• DCAF Border Security Programme
• Implementation of the Police Cooperation Convention for Southeast Europe (PCC)
• Development of Strategic Management Capacity in the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia
• Introduction of a Modern Human Resources Management Concept to the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia
• Integration of gender dimension into police activities in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation programmes in Bulgaria and Romania on Asylum, Migration and Human Trafficking
• Swiss Regional Police Cooperation Programme in the Western Balkans 2012-2016
• Training courses for border security officials: a) Regional commanders, b) Station commanders
• Future Leaders Course for junior border security officers in Andermatt, Switzerland
• Evaluation of UN police deployments through DCAF ISSAT on behalf of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO)
• Reforming the Tunisian Ministry of the Interior and the Tunisian police

Key publications

• Toolkit on Police Integrity (2012)
  The Toolkit on Police Integrity aims to assist police services in designing effective measures to curb police corruption, increasing their ability to fight crime, improving public security and strengthening the rule of law and public trust in the police.
• Decision Making in Policing: Operations and Management (2011)
  Decision making in the police environment must take advantage of the latest advances in business and military management, but at the same time remain aware of the challenges associated with maintaining and restoring order on a day-to-day basis.
• The Gender and Security Sector Reform Training Resource Package (2008)
  Police Reform and Gender
  Border Management and Gender
  The GSSR Training Resource Package contains a wide range of exercises, discussion topics and examples of best practices from the ground including tools on police reform and gender, and border management and gender.