Police benefits from one million-euro grant

Accra, Jan. 5 GNA - The Ghana Police Service would benefit from a one million-euro grant from the French Government to rehabilitate its forensic laboratories as well as provide communication equipment in all the 10 regions.

The project, which started in March 2004, would run for the next three years and is expected to increase the capacity of the Service as well as enhance the work of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) in various parts of the country.

Mr Michel Pothier, Captain of Police and French Project Co-ordinator, announced this on Wednesday when the out-going French Ambassador, Jean-Michel Berrit called on Mr Hackman Owusu-Agyemang, Minister of the Interior to bid him farewell after his four-year duty tour.

He said the French Government was sending experts from France to train their local counterparts in modern forms of criminal investigations.

Pothier also said the new communication equipment, which would be installed, would be used to transmit data and voice messages to and from the regions to facilitate the work of the CID.

He said the CID personnel would also be taught French language so as to enable them to communicate effectively with those from neighbouring countries.

Ambassador Berrit said Ghana could be an example for the rest of Africa for the mature way in which it conducted Election 2004. He gave the assurance that France would continue to support Ghana in her developmental effort.

Mr Owusu-Agyemang thanked the French Government for logistics and equipment it had given to the Ghana Police.

He also appealed to France to assist in the area of cotton production since the French had a vast experience in that sector. The Minister also called on the French Government to treat Ghanaian immigrants humanely since they also contributed to the development of that country.