Basrah International Airport, one of the border crossing points benefiting from infrastructure upgrade and border management training under CBIBM

This project will pilot the implementation of an Integrated Border Management (IBM) in Iraq by promoting active intra-service and inter-agency cooperation amongst Iraqi state agencies and ministries involved in border management, at both the national level and the Border Crossing Points in the Basrah region as well as by enhancing common surveillance capabilities for the flow of legal persons and goods through targeted infrastructure upgrade and improved border management training. This will be complemented by institutionalizing cooperative data collection, sharing and analysis for risk management, as well as enabling the rational appropriation of new IBM concepts by the Government of Iraq (GOI) in support of their subsequent replication nationally.

The project aims to establish an Integrated Border Management Model at the borders in Basrah region (Southern Iraq) which then can be replicated at national level. There are seven international border crossing points in Basrah

• Basrah Airport
• Shalamja land BCP (at border with Iran)
• Safwan land BCP (at border with Kuwait)
• Um Qasser seaport
• Abu Flus seaport
• Khour Azubair seaport
• Al Maaqel seaport

The CBIBM Programme officially took off from April 2007, project implementation started in July 2007. Programme is expected to end in March 2009. Stakeholders involve ministries with roles and responsibilities in border control in the GoI. CBIBM is funded by the Government of Japan and supported by the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) Iraq. In January 2008, the Immigration Training Extension Centre (ITEC) was opened in Basrah which is designed to allow residential courses for 60 students at a time. It has fully equipped document examination, computer and language labs, lecture halls as well as lodging facilities and administrative offices.