Peacekeepers gain skills in integrated mission planning |03 October 2019

A souvenir photograph after the certificate presentation ceremony

Twenty-two East African Standby Force (EASF) peacekeepers who had attended the last leg of three weeks’ training of trainers in integrated mission planning, held at the Seychelles Coast Guard, were presented with their certificates yesterday morning.

The military, police and civilian personnel from the member states – Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda and Seychelles – are the first cohort of EASF as certified trainers.

Among them are five Seychellois – Daniel Roseline and Michel Souris from the military and Steve Lalanne, Fred Bamboche and Jules Hoareau as civilians.

The participants have from September 23, 2019 to October 3, 2019 been imparted with knowledge and skills on planned peace support operations that will enable them to train and run the course and also to carry out well-coordinated and integrated missions when such need arises.

The facilitators were from the United Kingdom and Denmark.

The training in Seychelles, with a technical aspect, was a follow-up to the Integrated Mission Planning Course (IMPC) held previously in different EASF member States such as Rwanda and Sudan. The participants had to pass an exam to be certified as IMPC trainers.

Addressing the participants, the EASF’s certification leading facilitator, Peter Zartsdahl, said that the African Union (AU) has plans in future to conduct further IMPC training with other standby peace mission forces across Africa and they, the participants, will be the suitable candidates to conduct the training.

He noted that EASF will not be relying on foreigners to conduct the IMPC training now with the availability of the certified trainers and also from those that will join in future.

In a closing remark, Major Jude Raoul, who was speaking on behalf of the Chief of Defence Forces of Seychelles, urged the participants to encourage their colleagues to follow such course for the betterment of the organisation.

He said that the Seychelles People’s Defence Forces is fully committed to working with the EASF and will continue to put its facilities at the latter’s disposal for future courses.

The EASF is a regional organisation whose mandate is to enhance peace and security in the Eastern Africa region. The head of administration and finance of EASF’s secretariat is based in Nairobi, Kenya.

EASF information manager and course participant, Jules Hoareau, said the organisation is in the process of training its members to train other members in country member states so that they will be able to perform their peace mission tasks in a well-coordinated and integrated manner.

Mr Hoareau said that in most instances it is the country in need of assistance that files for the EASF’s assistance and only in the case of a genocide or in other humanitarian crisis that EASF will from the green light from the United Nations and the African Union, intervene without waiting for a request from the country concerned.

During the graduation ceremony, the participants presented a commemorative plaque to the Commander of the Seychelles Coast Guard, Lieutenant François Antat, for the use of the coast guard facilities.

Also present at the ceremony were Colette Servina, the civilian focal point for EASF in Seychelles, Superintendent Ronnie Mousbe from the Police and desk officer from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Octavia Rose.