Ghana

Ghana Police Service

Law enforcement services in Ghana are provided by the following agencies of the Ministry of Interior:

• Ghana Police Service (GPS);
• Ghana Prisons Service;
• Ghana National Fire Service;
• Ghana Immigration Service;
• Narcotic Control Board;
• National Disaster Management Organization;
• Refugee Board.

Headed by an Inspector General of Police, and with a strength of more than 23,000 officers, the GPS is made up of regional and divisional commands across Ghana which each report directly to the Accra-based headquarters.

GPS objectives:

• Life and property protection;
• Crime detection and prevention;
• Disaster prevention and response;
• Regulation and monitoring of the entry, stay and exit of non-Ghanaians and travelling public;
• Development of an efficient and humane custodial reformatory system;
• Development of a good public relations system.

The Inspector General of Police is assisted by two Deputies – one responsible for administration, the other for operations:

Administration:

• Human Resource Development;
• Welfare;
• Research, Planning and Information Communication and Technology;
• Strategic Direction and Monitoring;
• Finance.

Operations:

• Legal and Special Duties;
• Logistics and Support Services;
• Operations;
• Police Intelligence and Professional Standards Bureau;
• Criminal Investigation Department, which comprises the INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB) for Ghana.

INTERPOL Accra

An active member of the West African Police Chiefs’ Committee (WAPCCO), Ghana was also the first African country to host an INTERPOL General Assembly (in 1976).  Through INTERPOL Accra, the GPS cooperates actively both with other national law enforcement services but also regionally and internationally, in the fight against terrorism, internet fraud, money laundering, and trafficking in drugs, stolen vehicles, human beings, small arms and light weapons. 

Staffed by nearly twenty police officers, INTERPOL Accra is part of the GPS Criminal Investigation Department and is therefore directly accountable to the Inspector General. Located at the national headquarters, the NCB performs all INTERPOL and international related assignments on behalf of GPS, and is its exclusive platform for all national investigations which need to go beyond the Ghanaian borders.

The NCB is responsible for the extradition and deportation of fugitives to other INTERPOL member countries and enjoys regular and effective cooperation from its partners both in the region and across the world.

INTERPOL Ghana conducts regular field operations in cooperation with the INTERPOL General Secretariat and other member countries, particularly in the areas of combating child trafficking and in the illegal trade in ivory, stolen vehicles and counterfeit medical products.

As part of a strategy to boost national security and prevent criminal activity in Ghana, INTERPOL Accra recently connected some of its national law enforcement partners to INTERPOL's I-24/7 network and databases, thus giving police across the country instant and automated access to INTERPOL’s criminal databases. Kotoka International Airport and the two sea ports, in Tema and Takoradi Harbours, now have hands-on access to critical data on wanted persons, vehicles and stolen and lost travel documents in a matter of seconds.  With this new capacity, Ghanaian police officers in the field can quickly determine if a person is a potential threat to national security.