ESWATINI
Tackling organized crime in Southern Africa
Southern African organized crime groups are typically involved in wildlife and forestry crime (particularly stock theft) and trafficking in drugs, firearms, stolen cars or counterfeit products, including pharmaceuticals.
Many crime networks engage in all these crime areas simultaneously, using the same trafficking routes to move multiple forms of illegal produce across the region, often bringing violence, insecurity and economic loss with them.
The international characteristics of these crime areas and their links with crime networks around the world make the role of the INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB) in Eswatini is fundamental to maintaining national and regional security.
INTERPOL in Eswatini
The INTERPOL National Central Bureau in Mbabane is Eswatini’s lead agency for taking national criminal investigations beyond national borders when its law enforcement agencies need to work with police forces in other countries and continents.
The NCB sits at the heart of the Royal Eswatini Police at the police headquarters. By providing globally-sourced intelligence about regional crime trends, the NCB helps police officers across Eswatini detect and investigate the flow of illicit goods along trafficking routes in and around the country.
Through the Mbabane NCB, the Royal Eswatini Police regularly takes part in INTERPOL-led regional police operations, particularly when they focus on the illegal trade in protected species, violations of intellectual property rights or human trafficking.
Royal Eswatini Police Service
National law enforcement services in Eswatini are provided by the Royal Eswatini Police, which answers directly to the Prime Minister’s office.
The Police Commissioner is in command of the police force and is directly accountable to the King of Eswatini, who acts as the Commissioner-in-Chief of the Police.