ECOWAS has been deploying an intelligence sharing network for several years with the aim of strengthening regional cooperation in the fight against cross-border crime. After Côte d'Ivoire and Niger in particular, it is now Sierra Leone's turn to join the system.

Sierra Leone inaugurated the National Crime Management System (NCMS) National Data Collection and Recording Center on Thursday 27 January. This center is the Sierra Leone branch of the West African Police Information System (SIPAO or WAPIS). Its mission is to make "operational the WAPIS system in Sierra Leone" and is called NCMS-WAPIS.

The NCMS-WAPIS will also enable Sierra Leone to “effectively respond to national, regional and international criminal threats, including transnational organized crime and terrorism”. This system, which covers all fifteen countries in the West African zone, is financed by the EU through a program covering the period 2012-2022. It is piloted by INTERPOL with the political and strategic support of ECOWAS.