During the week of February 9–13, 2026, Focused Conservation continued its commitment to strengthening frontline wildlife crime enforcement by facilitating specialized intelligence training for Nigeria’s Customs Service Special Wildlife Office (SWO).
The course was delivered by Andrew Kewley, a seasoned UK Intelligence Officer with 36 years of experience in criminal investigations and intelligence operations. Over five intensive days, Kewley provided in-depth instruction to 13 Customs officers and support personnel, equipping them with enhanced tools to identify, analyze, and operationalize intelligence in wildlife crime cases.
The training focused on the foundational principles of intelligence, clarifying when raw information becomes actionable intelligence, understanding the various sources of intelligence, safely and effectively meeting human sources, properly recording and grading intelligence, and applying structured analysis through practical, scenario-based exercises.
Supported by Focused Conservation’s Technical Advisor (TA) Danny Murphy, the program emphasized sustainability and peer-to-peer knowledge transfer. Officers were encouraged not only to absorb the material but to build the confidence and competence to share these skills within their own teams.
A highlight of the week came when one SWO member delivered a detailed and insightful presentation on digital exploitation and media data extraction. The officer demonstrated how intelligence derived from mobile phones and other digital devices can close both intelligence and evidentiary gaps, an increasingly critical capability in modern wildlife trafficking investigations.
Feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive, with participants noting that the training was directly relevant to their operational responsibilities and significantly enhanced their existing knowledge and investigative capabilities.
This training underscores Focused Conservation’s core model: embedding expertise, building long-term capacity, and empowering specialized wildlife crime units to operate independently and effectively. Intelligence-led enforcement remains one of the most powerful tools in disrupting organized wildlife trafficking networks, and investments in professional development like this ensure that the SWO continues to evolve as a capable, proactive force in the fight against wildlife crime.
