THE National Security Strategy (NSS) took another important step forward in its implementation  with the recent approval by Cabinet of staff for the data entry system of the crime observatory. Over 40 police stations and access points are already on this country’s crime observatory network, and the recently approved staffing would allow for the inputting of prescribed data and events of criminal notice originating in stations.
Also, other offices would allow for the inputting to be electronically transmitted and updated to the central data recording and data analysis centre at the crime observatory, an information flow designed to be done daily, with the analysis at the centre ongoing, Secretary to the Cabinet, Dr. Roger Luncheon told a media briefing yesterday.
The end result, he said, will allow for a comprehensive nationwide data compilation of specified, notified criminal activities being immediately or almost immediately available for dissemination.
More importantly, the analysis is intended to disclose trends, and when properly utilized, will help in improving planning, crime fighting and crime prevention, Dr Luncheon said.
The vast majority of staff  for the organsation, created by and to be administered by the Ministry of Home Affairs, would be employees of the Ministry of Home Affairs and not serving members of the police or other sister agencies, he noted.
The civilian data entry staff assigned to police stations will encode every case of murder, rape, domestic violence, and robbery, along with details which would be sent on a daily basis to the main centre.
The information, when consolidated, analysed and forwarded to the organization, would greatly assist the Ministry of Home Affairs and the security services who are tasked with implementing strategies to support crime fighting and crime prevention, Dr Luncheon emphasised.