COCKBURN TOWN, TCI – The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) Border Force has bolstered its staff training provision to help increase safety and security at its air and seaports.
Before transitioning TCI customs and immigration departments into border force, the ministry of immigration and border services conducted a full review of both departments’ operations to align their internal processes with current best practices.
As part of this, the ministry of immigration and border services conducted an audit of the border force’s predecessors’ learning and development activities in partnership with the UK sector skills council for justice – Skills for Justice.
Recommendations off the back of the audit are now being implemented to monitor and improve training quality, behaviours and personal development activities.
Emilio Seymour, director general at Turks and Caicos Border Islands Force, explains:
“Our people are central to safeguarding national security, promoting global stability, and securing the pathways of commerce and culture that define TCI’s identity.
“Efficient training is critical, particularly for our Border Force, which is why the Learning and Development team embarked on a series of projects to drive home people management and training improvements across the organisation.
“The Skills for Justice audit was our starting point for all this, and I am pleased to share that that both Customs and Immigration were found to be demonstrating good practices in their training provision, excelling in areas such as continuous professional development, clarity in course objectives, and effective course evaluation.
“Our nation is committed to strengthening border security, ensuring a safe haven for its citizens, and so we have already begun implementing a series of interventions to improve our professional development and improving training practices even further.”
Sharon Wilton, technical consultant at Skills for Justice who led on the project in collaboration with TCI Border Force, commented:
“TCI Border Force has a robust learning and development system in place, with effective practices evident across many areas, which in turn supports positive safety and security outcomes for the Islands.
“The implementation of a quality assurance framework will serve to elevate the training provision for TCI Border Force, enabling them to better anticipate and counter threats.”
Skills for Justice are committed to improving safety, security, and professional development across sectors such as justice, public safety, and border control.
