WILLEMSTAD – Nearly five years after the Netherlands launched a program to strengthen border security in Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten, the three Caribbean countries continue to struggle with personnel shortages that prevent them from independently carrying out several important border control activities.
An independent evaluation conducted by research firm DSP-groep, commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (BZK), concludes that the program has produced improvements in border security operations but has only partially achieved its objective of strengthening local institutions.
The evaluation covers the period from February 2021 through December 2025 and examines cooperation between the Netherlands and the three Caribbean countries.
The program was introduced in 2021 to strengthen efforts against drug trafficking, human trafficking, weapons smuggling, and illegal migration. The Netherlands provided personnel from the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee and Dutch Customs, along with financial resources for equipment, training, and operational improvements.
The intention was not simply to increase border inspections but to develop stronger and more professional local border agencies capable of maintaining these improvements independently.
However, the evaluation shows that this objective remains difficult to achieve, particularly in Curaçao.
One of the clearest examples is the Intelligence Centre Grens (IC-Grens), a joint border intelligence center established to improve information sharing between the police, customs, and other border security organizations.
The original arrangement required participating agencies to assign their own personnel to the center. However, local staffing shortages have prevented this from happening.
According to the evaluation, the intelligence center is currently staffed entirely by personnel from the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee.
Although the participating organizations meet weekly to exchange information about security developments and potential threats, the absence of local personnel limits opportunities for transferring knowledge and developing independent operational capacity.
The researchers acknowledge that cooperation between the agencies has improved. Information is exchanged more efficiently, and organizations are better positioned to coordinate their activities when necessary.
Nevertheless, the continued dependence on Dutch personnel makes the arrangement vulnerable.
A similar problem affects cooperation between the Curaçao Police Force and Dutch security personnel.
The evaluation found that the police force does not have sufficient employees available to participate consistently in joint assignments with Dutch colleagues.
Consequently, the intended system of working side by side, commonly referred to as twinning, has barely developed.
In some cases, Dutch Marechaussee officers perform duties independently rather than alongside local personnel, reducing opportunities for training and knowledge transfer.
The researchers warn that this situation undermines one of the central objectives of the program: ensuring that Curaçao's border security organizations eventually become less dependent on external assistance.
The evaluation recognizes the value of the Dutch personnel working on the islands and acknowledges that their presence contributes to daily border security operations.
However, it concludes that additional personnel alone cannot resolve structural weaknesses within local institutions.
Without sufficient investment in recruiting, training, and retaining local employees, the improvements achieved through Dutch support may prove difficult to sustain.
The findings raise questions about whether the program should continue primarily as a means of supplementing personnel shortages or be redesigned to prioritize the long-term independence of Curaçao's border security agencies.