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New system aims to combat car theft

Staff Writer
By Staff Writer, ITWeb
Johannesburg, 20 Aug 2002

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has developed an information system designed to combat illegal vehicle trafficking across the borders of Southern African states by using standard clearance receipts.

Developed by the CSIR`s Information and Communications Technology (icomtek) division, the system is aimed at assisting in the fight against illegal vehicle trafficking by providing timeous management information for the Southern African regional vehicle clearance process.

It was officially handed over to representatives of the Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Co-operation Organisation (SARPCCO) earlier this year. The police organisation has agreed to standardise the issuance of vehicle clearance certificates.

The CSIR designed certificates about 18 months ago and they have been implemented in all the member countries.

"Burgeoning volumes of certificates and sophisticated modus operandi of vehicle crime syndicates prompted SARPCCO to co-operate with the CSIR in developing a reliable, user-friendly and secure Web-based system for the SARPCCO Vehicle Clearance System," says Graham Wright, manager of the CSIR Crime Prevention Centre.

"Improved management of certificate issuance is possible though faster access to information. The system prompts corrective actions through interaction with the relevant country`s National Central Bureau (the national Interpol office within each member country). Changes to business rules are managed centrally, while access via the Internet ensures greater general availability of the system to authorised users."

Itai Maunga, project manager in CSIR icomtek`s computing programme, says: "Using modern software development methodologies like the incremental and iterative approach ensured that the CSIR icomtek team delivered the custom-developed solution that met SARPCCO`s requirements in a short space of time."

The system manages the entire process from the dispatch of new certificates to designated offices and the actual issuing of certificates, to the audit reports. Using the extensive search facility and reporting modules, SARPCCO officials are able to easily and quickly identify syndicate trends and supply vital information to law enforcement agencies.

"The key to the success of the project was the continual involvement of SARPCCO representatives during the entire development process which ensured that the client was informed on developments on the project," Maunga says.

A Web server processes requests from clients and manages access to the high-end database server (centrally situated at the sub-regional bureau offices in Harare). The server holds all the data concerning the vehicles tendered for clearance purposes. High levels of security ensure that only authorised users have access to the system.

SARPCCO has representatives from 12 member countries: Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, SA, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

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