The term Integrated Border Management (IBM) refers to the coordination and cooperation among all the relevant authorities and agencies involved in border security and trade facilitation to establish effective, efficient and integrated border management systems, in order to reach the common goal of open, but controlled and secure borders

A small group of representatives from the Albanian Border and Migration Police, Customs Service, and Phyto-sanitary Services and Veterinary Services met routinely in an effort to develop an IBM Strategy and a corresponding Action Plan which are fully in line with the
“Guidelines for Integrated Border Management in the Western Balkans”, the working document of the European Commission which has set the standard in the field of IBM.
Their efforts were supported by the CARDS Regional IBM Programme, which, under the leadership of the French SCTIP and the facilitation of the module leader ICMPD provided the framework for the development of the IBM documents through the organisation of a series of workshops. These activities took place in close cooperation with PAMECA, EU CAFAO-Albania and ICITAP – Albania, who provided long term local expertise, technical assistance, logistical support and the necessary follow up actions to ensure a successful outcome.
It is worth mentioning that the international assistance provided in the course of the drafting phase came in the form of facilitation and recommendations; the ownership of this process was at all times in Albanian hands. The result of this joint effort are two documents which do justice to Albanian realities while at the same time providing step by step guidance for the future development in the field of IBM along international standards.
Objectives of the IBM Strategy and Action Plan. The Albanian IBM Strategy contains an assessment of the current situation in the field of border management and identifies the areas where improvement is necessary. The IBM Action Plan contains concrete Objectives which are based on the recommendations of the Strategy. Each Objective is broken down into Actions and each action further divided into Activities to facilitate the implementation of the plan. Both, Strategy and Action Plan, are “living documents” and need to be updated on a regular basis.