HSI opens two new offices in critical areas of Africa

HSI photo of African Offic

US Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Office of International Affairs (OIA) expanded its footprint Africa by opening offices in Nairobi, Kenya and Dakar, Senegal.

OIA, said ICE on April 2, now has 75 offices in 48 countries around the world.

HSI Nairobi, opened in January 2013, said ICE is located on the Horn of Africa, which is currently facing threats from terrorist groups. The terrorist activity in the region, said ICE, is affecting many countries in eastern Africa, but poses a challenge to nations on every continent. HSI Nairobi, said ICE, currently covers Brazzaville, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Kenya, Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda.

OIA also opened the HSI Dakar office in early March, said the agency. Located on the western edge of Africa, the office oversees Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.

"HSI's expansion into sub-Saharan Africa is critical to our shared mission to combat transnational crime," said acting assistant director of OIA Peter Vincent. "No country can do it alone, it can only be accomplished through a series of shared strategies, strong partnerships, international cooperation and a wide range of investigative tools."