ABU DHABI — On November 13, officials from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) met with counterparts from the U.S. Department of State and the United Arab Emirates at the Preclearance Port Directors Summit in Abu Dhabi.

Led by Clint Lamm, Director of the Preclearance Field Office, the CBP delegation challenged participants to “imagine, influence, innovate” to further enhance U.S. Preclearance operations. Guest speakers and transformational business leaders such as U.S. Ambassador to the UAE John Rakolta, Jr. and His Excellency Abdulla S. Al Darmaki, CEO of the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, contributed critical insight to the summit.

H.E. Abdulla S. Al Darmaki speaks at the CBP Preclearance

Summit in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

“CBP approached the summit with a fundamental strategic question,” said Lamm. “How can we further improve Preclearance so that we provide even more value to the traveling public, industry partners, and U.S. national security?”

Preclearance operations have already delivered substantial gains in travel facilitation and security. Last year, CBP’s Preclearance Field Office processed more than 22.4 million passengers and crew bound for 167 U.S. airports, interdicting more than 9,000 inadmissible travelers before they boarded flights to the United States.

“Preclearance has accomplished a lot for CBP and the American public, but it would be a mistake to accept the status quo,” said Clay Thomas, Preclearance Port Director in Dublin, Ireland. “This summit was about making Preclearance more efficient and effective.”

Lamm urged attendees to work toward a Preclearance program that not only processes more travelers, interdicts individual bad actors and disrupts transnational criminal networks, but that also identifies and eliminates inefficient administrative systems and methodologies that negatively impact support of frontline operations.

Key to this effort will be developing robust public-private partnerships and encouraging governments, travel industry stakeholders, and travelers to view security and travel facilitation as mutually reinforcing components of a single process.

“Strong international relationships support our ability to protect the homeland and our constant pursuit to enhance the services we provide,” said Lamm. “His Excellency Al Darmaki’s perspective on entrepreneurial approaches to business transformation and public-private partnerships resonated with Preclearance.”

Lamm also emphasized the need to sustain Preclearance’s strong tradition of innovation. Abu Dhabi, where Preclearance operators have implemented cutting-edge technologies, provided an apt setting in which to discuss transformative business practices.

“The Preclearance model in Abu Dhabi exemplifies the art of the possible,” said Michael K. Brown, Preclearance Port Director in Vancouver, Canada. “Government, law enforcement and business leaders working together to achieve impactful, mutually beneficial goals.”

Preclearance enables CBP to strategically position Officers and Agricultural Specialists overseas to inspect travelers prior to boarding flights bound for the United States. These operations enhance U.S. security while facilitating swifter entry and faster connection times for U.S.-bound travelers.

More information about CBP Preclearance is available here.