The Cayman Islands will host a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) intelligence workshop in June 2027 under a new agreement signed with the global sports watchdog.
The government signed a letter of intent with WADA to host the Global Anti-Doping Intelligence and Investigations Network (GAIIN) workshop next year.
The declaration was endorsed by culture and heritage minister Isaac Rankine on behalf of the government.
The workshop forms part of WADA’s Global Anti-Doping Intelligence and Investigations Network (GAIIN), an initiative led by its intelligence and investigations (I&I) department.
The programme is designed to strengthen cooperation, intelligence-sharing and investigative capabilities between anti-doping organisations and law enforcement agencies.
It builds on WADA’s Intelligence and Investigations Capability and Capacity Building Project, which has already been rolled out in Europe and Asia/Oceania.
Günter Younger, WADA director of intelligence and investigations, said in a press release on 17 July that Cayman will play a role in the programme’s expansion into the Americas.
“WADA I&I looks forward to beginning its expansion of GAIIN into the Americas at the end of 2026, and we are confident that the workshops will have a significant impact on the development of I&I capacity and capability in the region in the short and long terms.”
Since the programme was launched, GAIIN has supported more than 250 operations.
According to WADA, those operations have contributed to the seizure of more than 90 tonnes of performance-enhancing drugs and the dismantling of more than 80 illicit laboratories through cooperation between law enforcement agencies and national anti-doping organisations.
WADA’s intelligence and investigations department visited the Cayman Islands earlier this year to assess interest in hosting the workshop.
During the same visit, the agency also formalised an agreement with the Government of Jamaica and the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission to host a GAIIN workshop in September 2027.
The Cayman and Jamaica events will follow workshops already scheduled for Peru in November 2026 and Ecuador in March 2027.
Like previous GAIIN workshops, the Cayman event will be tailored to the region.
It will focus on intelligence functions, investigative techniques, confidential source management, open-source research, and analytical and interviewing methods.
