
Introduction
Building on more than ten years of experience in Lebanon, BPSPII aims to help the Internal Security Force’s (ISF) transition from a police ‘force’ to a more effective and accountable police ‘service’. It also seeks to support the ISF deal with emerging constraints related to Lebanon’s multi-layered crises. The programme’s theory of change is centred on supporting the ISF to become a more effective, responsive and accountable policing service, in order to build public trust and increase safety.
Background
The beginning of BPSPII implementation in 2019 coincided with the onset of widespread public demonstrations across Lebanon, as a reaction to an ossified political system, rampant corruption, mismanagement of public funds and a deepening economic crisis. Since then, Lebanon’s security situation has rapidly deteriorated, as unprecedented political, financial and health crises have hit the already beleaguered country. Threats such as heightened refugee/host tensions, latent sectarian conflict, the continued risk of terrorism also jeopardise social stability and security and represent substantial challenges for the ISF. The ISF will have to meet these challenges within a new political paradigm characterised by government austerity, public hiring freezes, and limited resources.
Approach
The project builds directly on the ISF’s strategic plan for 2018-2022 and is underpinned by the assumption that a policing approach based on community engagement – whereby locally identified security needs are addressed and resolved with the community – is one that is more responsive to community needs, delivers better community safety and security, and ultimately improves trust in the police.
Intended Outcomes
- Effectiveness: The Interior Ministry and the ISF are more effectively coordinating internally and with other agencies to counter internal public safety challenges, and more effectively governing the ISF’s transition toward a community-oriented policing model
- Responsiveness: ISF improved responsiveness to the security needs of men and women in different communities, as per the community policing model
- Accountability: ISF provides policing that is increasingly human rights compliant and accountable to all Lebanese citizens and the rule of law
Workstreams
- Strategic planning: supporting the ISF to drive the implementation of its Strategic Plan 2018-2022, and to institutionalise strategic planning and governance processes.
- Governance: supporting the establishment and operationalisation of a team for analysis, planning and coordination within the Interior Ministry. The team will be equipped with the skills, tools and digital architecture to effectively coordinate donor activities and produce analytical reports that inform policy and decision making.
- Security optimisation: supporting improved interoperability between the ISF and the LAF in response to threats to public safety and public order events.
- Vertical integration of community policing:
- Strategic communications: building the capabilities of the ISF Public Relations department to conduct community dialogue and strategic communications.
- Intelligence-led policing: establishing at the ISF headquarters a fit for purpose command and control facility that is linked to 22 regional operations rooms and acts as a data-driven decision-making hub for the ISF. This component includes installing customised software to improve the command and control centre’s analytical capabilities. A command and control centre for the Police of Beirut was similarly set up in an earlier iteration of the project.
- Horizontal integration of community policing: supporting key operational police units in Beirut to develop and implement gender- and conflict-sensitive toolkits as well as community engagement plans. This component also involves rolling out the community policing model to the Northern region in Lebanon via the establishment of the Northern Command and Control Centre.
- Public order optimisation: improving the ISF’s response to public order events through the development of a public order manual of guidance and use of force guidelines. This includes setting up a policy function to lead on the mainstreaming of the doctrine across the organisation, as well as the provision of training, mentoring and technical assistance to the ISF.
- Human resource reform: drafting a scoping report on Human Resource Management (HRM) within the Police of Beirut to produce recommendations on how to rationalise and optimise staffing to improve organisational efficiency and effectiveness. Entry points for wider HRM reform within the ISF as a whole will be identified through a pilot reform process in the Police of Beirut.
- ISF detention and due process reform: drafting a scoping report on ISF detention and due process reform, and piloting improved detention facilities in Tripoli, including dedicated facilities for women and juveniles. This includes creating custody processes for women and juveniles, training custody officers and embedding the curriculum in ISF Academy.
- Human Rights training: strengthening mechanisms for mainstreaming human rights across training in the ISF academy.
- Accountability: providing training, mentoring and technical assistance to the Human Rights Division in the Inspectorate General. This includes supporting the implementation of human rights-compliant checklists for inspecting prisons, police stations and public order operations.
Geographic scope
Lebanon
Institutional partner
Project Partners
- Internal Security Forces
- Ministry of Interior and Municipalities
Date
Sept. 2019 – March 2022
Point of contact
Karin Delin, Programme Manager
Project updates
Made possible with support from the UK government