Securing the Border By Sharing Lessons Learned

One of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) missions is to safeguard the American homeland at and beyond the border. Securing the Southwestern border is an important part of this.

CBP has implemented a number of successful measures along the Southwestern border and there is a lot to learn and share.

For example, CBP increased the number of law enforcement resources from approximately 9,100 Border Patrol Agents in 2001 to nearly 18,500 today. In FY 2012, Border Patrol apprehension activity remained at historic lows with apprehensions in California, Arizona and New Mexico. CBP has also made investments in border surveillance technology along the Southwestern border which have yielded good results.

Because of these measures, the Southwestern border communities are safe and economies are strong. Business Insider published a list of the top 25 most dangerous cities in America, and none of them are located along the Southwestern border. In FY 2012, more than $176 billion in goods entered through the Laredo and El Paso, Texas ports of entry as compared to $160 billion in FY 2011.

To continue to secure the Southwestern border, CBP can collect and share the lessons learned by creating a knowledge repository. Lessons learned in the repository can cover resource allocation strategies, border security tactics, economic strategies, as just some of the examples.  This would provide an opportunity for CBP to share information of what works and what doesn’t work and best practices for working in communities that need immediate help.