Preliminary Congress Guide

The Organizing Committee of the World Border Security Congress has launched the Preliminary Congress Guide.
Welcome to your guide to the Preliminary Congress Programme of the 2024 World Border Security Congress taking place in the historic city of Istanbul on 24th-26th April 2024.
The guide provides you all the information you require for a successful attendance, from the outline Congress Programme to details on the Closed Agency Only Workshops, as well as a great Accommodation Special Rate.

Download Guide Here
Preliminary Congress Guide

About the Congress

Turkey is arguably the most strategically positioned countries in the world and Istanbul, the most strategically positioned city. Turkey stands on the crossroads between two continents and indeed two cultures. It also sits astride the Bosporus Strait, connecting two of the world’s most important seas, the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Turkey has rail and/or […]

Read More

Great reasons for you to attend

The World Border Security Congress is a high level 3 day event for senior border officials to discuss and debate current and future policies, implementation issues and challenges as well as new and developing technologies that contribute towards safe and secure border and migration management.

Download Preliminary Conference Guide
75
Speakers
400
Participants
30
Exhibitors
60
Countries

Latest Speakers Announced

Daniel Guerrero
Watchlisting Assistance and Support Program (WASP) Adviser ICITAP/Dept of Justice, and Counterterrorism Bureau, Dept of State, USA
David Vollmar
Managing Director, Unival Group Germany
Theofanis Syrigos
Chairman of the EES-ETIAS Advisory Group & Head of the Business Relations Management Sector eu-LISA
Lt. Col. Ozkan Altiner
CT Branch Chief Gendarmerie General Command, Turkiye
Goran Stojkovski
Programme Management Officer UN Countering Terrorist Travel Programme (CT Travel)
Capt. Paul Gregg
Director of Law Enforcement, Maritime Security, and Defense Operations Policy US Coast Guard
Akuila Ratu
Head of Secretariat Pacific Immigration Development Community, Samoa
Kevin Davies
Chief Commercial Officer Decision Sciences International Corporation (DSIC)
Thomas King
Higher Officer - General Aviation Multi-Agency Hub Home Office Intelligence – Border Force, UK
Ibrahim Irdem
Assistant Professor Turkish National Police Academy, Turkey
Oksana Kurysheva
Associate Programme Officer OSCE
Dr Kaitlin Ball
Adviser, Human Rights and New Technologies OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE ODIHR)

Congress Agenda

Am excellent programme for the international border security, protection and management community.
8:30 am - 12:30 pm

Site Visits to: Istanbul International Airport; or Port of Istanbul For further details click here >>

9:30 am - 12:30 pm Workshops Room

This Workshop, organized by the African Young People Support Centre (AYPSC) in collaboration with the African Smart Cities Innovation Foundation (ASCIF), is geared towards a comprehensive exploration of social-economic cross-border relations, Although a specific emphasis on the African continent, it covers examples from other continents. The event aims to unravel the intricate interplay between trade […]

Paul Igbinere Executive Director
African Young People Support Centre
10:30 am - 12:30 pm Workshops Room

Shaping the future requirements for traveller verification at European borders Wednesday 24th April 10.30am – 12.30pm The European Association Airport & Seaport Police is one of the 23 parties involved in the EU-funded project SafeTravellers, which started January this year and will last for three years. It aims to produce a near-operational system at TRL7 or above.  SafeTravellers is […]

Willem Mudde Director
MAPS international, Netherlands
1:30 pm - 3:30 pm Main Plenary Room

Opening Keynotes and Welcome Messages to the 2024 World Border Security Congress

3:30 pm - 4:00 pm Expo Hall

Networking Coffee Break

4:00 pm - 5:30 pm Main Plenary Room

It is well established that organised crime groups are able to adapt and evolve to use any weakness or vulnerability at our borders as a cover for nefarious activities. The migration crises we are experiencing on the southern borders of the US and EU offer prime opportunities for criminal activities, including smuggling migrants for money, […]

Akuila Ratu Head of Secretariat
Pacific Immigration Development Community, Samoa
Amanda Read National Operational lead, Safeguarding & Modern Slavery
UK Border Force
Iliuta Cumpanasu Lead Evaluator
FRONTEX
Pier Rossi-Longhi Senior Regional Immigration and Border Governance Specialist
IOM
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Expo Hall

Welcome Reception (Invitation Only) Sponsored by CRFS

9:00 am - 10:30 am Main Plenary Room

Whilst the threat from ISIL and Al Qaeda has diminished since the destruction of the Islamic Caliphate in Syria and Iraq, Isil’s defeat has left thousands of Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTF’s) in captivity in the Middle East and -Stan countries, with many more yet unaccounted for. How much of a long-term threat do these unaccounted […]

Goran Stojkovski Programme Management Officer
UN Countering Terrorist Travel Programme (CT Travel)
Jonas Oijevaar Head of Product Marketing
WCC Group, Netherlands
Sarah-Jane Prew Aviation Security Consultant
Arup UK
Tasiu Sanusi Saulawa Assistant Comptroller of Customs
Nigeria Customs Service
9:00 am - 10:30 am Workshops Room

Overview of the latest technologies and solutions for border management, security and protection

David Hill Chief Technology Officer
Sintela, UK
Declan Trezise Vice President, Global Solutions Engineering
Babel Street, UK
Guido Ferraro Project Manager, Joint Research Centre
European Commission
Ian Clarke Director Business Development and Client Relations
Sirius Insight, UK
Kevin Davies Chief Commercial Officer
Decision Sciences International Corporation (DSIC)
Malcolm Glaister Chief Executive Officer
Sirius Insight, UK
Seyit Ali Kaya Regional Manager
Iris ID Systems Inc., Turkey
Stefan Sauter Senior Product Manager
Veridos, Germany
10:30 am - 11:15 am

Networking Coffee Break

11:15 am - 12:30 pm Main Plenary Room

As perpetrators of trafficking human beings (THB) and international crimes, such as smuggling of drugs or illicit goods, continue to show signs of avoiding commercial airlines, there is evidence that regional airlines and airports, as well as light aircraft into small private aerodromes and fields, are being used for these activities, where the handling of […]

Michelle Conyers Assistant Director - General Aviation Multi-Agency Hub
Home Office Intelligence – Border Force, UK
Peter Nilsson Police Commissioner
Head of Airpol, Europe
Ruggero Scaturro Senior Analyst
Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC), Austria
Sjoerd Top Executive Director
Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre (Narcotics) – MAOC (N), Portugal
Thomas King Higher Officer - General Aviation Multi-Agency Hub
Home Office Intelligence – Border Force, UK
11:15 am - 12:30 pm Workshops Room

It is well established that inter-agency and international information sharing is essential for effectively fighting cross border crimes such as terrorism, THB, weapons and drug smuggling, the trade in cultural heritage and protected species. With no formal global organisation for agencies at the border, this Closed Agency Workshop is a mechanism and resource for agencies […]

Rocco Messina Head of Border Security and Management Unit
UN OCT
Snezhana Trajanovska, MSc Director
MARRI RC (Migration, Asylum, Refugees Regional Initiative Regional Centre)
12:30 pm - 2:00 pm Expo Hall

Delegate Lunch and Networking Break

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm Main Plenary Room

Securing maritime borders is one of the most challenging problems facing border and associated agencies. Tens of thousands of kilometres of coastline. Thousands of secluded bays and river estuaries and inlets. Islands, islets, cliffs, beaches, marshlands and mangrove swamps. Busy ports and harbours. Numerous commercial and pleasure craft coming and going in conditions that can […]

Capt. Paul Gregg Director of Law Enforcement, Maritime Security, and Defense Operations Policy
US Coast Guard
CDR (PRT-N) Ricardo Lopes Cell Head – Sub Saharan Africa in the Civil-Military Engagement and Coordination Section
NATO STRATEGIC DIRECTION - SOUTH HUB
Major General Jorge Ludovico Bolas Commander of the Coastal and Border Control Unit
GNR, Portugal
2:00 pm - 3:30 pm Workshops Room

Overview of the latest technologies and solutions for border management, security and protection

Andy Smith Director, Government & Industry Relations
SITA, UK
David Gerulski Executive Vice President
Integrated Biometrics, USA
David Simpson Senior Director for International Business Development
Teledyne Flir Defense, USA
Dr Maria Carmela Emanuele Customs Officer -Chemist
Italian Customs and Monopolies Agency
Sandra Slavinec CEO
Doculus Lumus, Austria
Sara Bracceschi Head of Consulting & Services, Customs
Center for Adaptive Security Research and Applications (CASRA)
3:30 pm - 4:15 pm Expo Hall

Networking Coffee Break

4:15 pm - 5:30 pm Main Plenary Room

The mandated use of API/PNR data will make travel much safer and ultimately easier. But, the more people and organisations that hold and share our personal data, the more vulnerable we all become to cyber-crime, both as individuals and as organisations. Systems using API/PNR data are and will be a target for cyber criminals. The […]

Dr Kaitlin Ball Adviser, Human Rights and New Technologies
OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE ODIHR)
Ibrahim Irdem Assistant Professor
Turkish National Police Academy, Turkey
Michael Schwaiger Senior Product Manager
secunet Security Networks AG, Germany
Paul Igbinere Executive Director
African Young People Support Centre
Theofanis Syrigos Chairman of the EES-ETIAS Advisory Group & Head of the Business Relations Management Sector
eu-LISA
4:15 pm - 5:30 pm Workshops Room

This Closed Agency Workshop will enable practitioners the opportunity to share analysis on the latest trends in cross border crimes and share some of their latest experiences of changing Modus Operandi of criminal groups operating in their area, and what they have done to combat these changing criminal activities/actions.

5:30 pm - 7:30 pm Expo Hall

Networking Reception sponsored by SITA

9:00 am - 10:30 am Main Plenary Room

Criminal actors continue to be very creative in developing new techniques and channels to conduct illicit activities. There is an old saying, ‘follow the money’ – investigating financial transactions and use that information to indicate evidence of a crime, a suspect or criminal network. But it is not only the money that facilitates this, it’s […]

Casey Durst Executive Assistant Commissioner, Operations Support
US Customs & Border Protection (USCBP)
David Vollmar Managing Director, Unival Group
Germany
Emmanuel Oshoba Comptroller of Customs
Nigeria Customs Service
LTC Marcos Pérez-Mayor Rodríguez Chief of Staff of the Border and Customs Police Command
Guardia Civil, Spain
Tofiq Murshudlu Head of Coordination, Border Management Branch
UNODC
9:00 am - 10:30 am Workshops Room

A Centre of Excellence (COE) is an entity offering specialised expertise and experience to the benefit of the NATO Alliance, especially in support of Transformation. The Centre of Excellence Defence Against Terrorism (COE-DAT) is a NATO accredited, multi-national sponsored entity located in Ankara, Türkiye. COE-DAT was inaugurated in 2005 as the second among the 30 […]

Brigadier General (ret) Maroun Hitti Defense and Military Expert
Lebanese Armed Forces
Dr. Richard Warnes Senior Consultant
Vedette Consulting (On behalf of NATO COE-DAT), UK
Lt. Col. Ozkan Altiner CT Branch Chief
Gendarmerie General Command, Turkiye
Prof. Ugur Gungor Faculty Member
Başkent University, Turkey
10:30 am - 11:15 am Expo Hall

Networking Coffee Break

11:15 am - 12:30 pm Main Plenary Room

Criminals and terrorists historically often make use of fake and genuine identity and travel documents to enable their illegal activities. The adoption of Entry/Exit systems and data will no doubt make this more difficult but we should anticipate that criminals and terrorists will use their undoubted ingenuity and considerable resources to circumvent this problem. So, […]

Claudio Kavrecic Head of Centre of Excellence for Combating Document Fraud
Frontex, Poland
Ivanka Spadina IBM Programme Coordinator for Turkey
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
11:15 am - 12:30 pm Workshops Room

This Closed Agency Workshop aims to promote the responsible and ethical use of watchlists. Why they are an essential tool for law enforcement and border agencies. It will cover what is required for an individual to be included on a watch list, what data and biometrics is included on an individual’s record within a watch […]

Daniel Guerrero Watchlisting Assistance and Support Program (WASP) Adviser
ICITAP/Dept of Justice, and Counterterrorism Bureau, Dept of State, USA
12:30 pm - 2:00 pm Expo Hall

Delegate Lunch and Networking Break

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm Main Plenary Room

It is now clear that entry/exit systems are future of our borders and that API/PNR data is fundamental to their successful implementation. But how is that implementation progressing, especially at our maritime and green borders where there is little or no experience in the use of these technologies and data systems, and where conditions make […]

AEAC Diane Sabatino Acting Executive Assistant Commissioner (AEAC)
Office of Field Operations (OFO), US CBP
Austin Gould Assistant Administrator for Requirements and Capabilities Analysis
Transport Security Administration, USA
Danilo Diniz Correia Implementation Assistant
International Organization for Migration, Argentina
Emmanuel Wang Vice-President Governance, Travel & Transport Business Line
IDEMIA, France
Lizeth Lema Matehu Project Manager
International Organization for Migration, El Salvador
Oksana Kurysheva Associate Programme Officer
OSCE
Rocco Messina Head of Border Security and Management Unit
UN OCT
Sabine Kloss-Tullius Head of Applications Processing Unit
European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) - ETIAS

Location

Gorrion Hotel Istanbul

Istanbul, Turkey

Gorrion Hotel, which was established in April 2014, is located on the Istanbul Basın Express Road and provides service with 252 rooms. With strategic location, to the Istanbul World Trade Center, Istanbul Fair Center, and Turkish Exporters Assembly, makes the hotel an ideal opportunity for business travelers. Gorrion Hotel Istanbul also attracts visitors participating in events at IFM and CNR Exhibition Centers throughout the year. Gorrion Hotel Istanbul is located within conveniently walking distance to Star City and Istwest shopping centers, which serve as social hubs for our guests. Additionally, historical landmarks such as the Grand Bazaar, Spice Bazaar, Blue Mosque, and Hagia Sophia are only a short drive away.

Blog

News

Download the latest issue of Border Security Report

Download your copy of Border Security Report at www.border-security-report.com/BSR Please find here your downloadable copy of the November/December 2023... Read More
News

World Border Security Congress have announced the 2024 provisional conference topics

The organisers of the World Border Security Congress have announced the provisional conference topics for the 2024 Congress on... Read More
News

Call for Papers Now Open

The Conference Organising Committee are inviting abstracts for consideration for inclusion in the 2024 Congress agenda. If you are... Read More