Institute of Justice awards USD900,000 to university

The Office of Justice Programs´ (OJP) National Institute of Justice (NIJ) said it has awarded a grant of more than USD900,000 to Elizabeth City State University (ECSU) to identify and assess cost-effective aviation technology for law enforcement in remote areas in cooperation with the Kenya Wildlife Service.

This award is part of an agreement between NIJ and the US Department of State´s Bureau of Counterterrorism.

The evidence-based research produced by this award will benefit US state and local law enforcement who are considering the use of low-cost aircraft to support their missions. This project will also strengthen law enforcement capacity to fight terrorism, secure borders, and combat wildlife trafficking in East Africa.

The project therefore addresses elements of both the US National Strategy for Counterterrorism as well as the Presidential Executive Order on Combating Wildlife Trafficking, which calls for enhanced domestic efforts to fight illegal trafficking of wildlife and increased assistance to foreign nations in building capacity to combat wildlife trafficking. It also furthers NIJ´s mission to adopt a global perspective on criminal justice research, especially for crimes that cross national borders.

ECSU´s project team brings expertise from aviation, engineering, technology, social science, sciences, business and law enforcement as well as a proven track record of sustained engagement with partner institutions in Africa.

OJP, headed by Assistant Attorney General Karol V. Mason, provides federal leadership in developing the nation´s capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice and assist victims.