From 11 to 17 May, the EU-funded Border Management Programme in Central Asia (BOMCA 10) organised a study visit to Poland, Lithuania and Latvia for senior officials of the Border Guard Service under the State Committee for National Security of the Kyrgyz Republic.
The visit aimed to familiarise the delegation with EU approaches to Integrated State Border Management (IBM), supporting the effective implementation of Kyrgyzstan’s Integrated Border Security Management Strategy and its Implementation Plan for 2025-2030.
Over the course of the week, participants met with counterparts from the Polish Border Guard, Lithuania’s State Border Guard Service, Latvia’s Border Guard, and the EU FRONTEX Agency.
Throughout the visit, the Kyrgyz delegation explored various aspects of IBM, including the implementation and monitoring of national IBM strategies, strategic and tactical risk analysis, the use of modern border surveillance technologies and infrastructure, interagency and cross-border cooperation mechanisms, as well as standards for the detention of illegal migrants and the processing of asylum seekers.
The programme combined policy-level discussions with practical exposure through field visits to road and green border crossing points, detention centres and advanced training institutions. Participants visited the FRONTEX Headquarters and its 24/7 Operations Centre in Warsaw and observed the use of drones and surveillance planning systems for “green border” protection along the Latvia-Belarus border.
This initiative reinforced mutual learning and opened new opportunities for cooperation between Kyrgyz border authorities and their EU counterparts, contributing to stronger and more effective border management in Central Asia.
The activity was implemented under BOMCA 10’s Component 1 “ Institutional Development of Border Control Agencies”, which aims to strengthen the institutional capacities of border control agencies in Central Asian countries to achieve international standards and best practices in ensuring national and regional security.