Kofi Ampeah Woode
The Directorate of Peacekeeping and Regional Security (DPKRS) of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, in collaboration with the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) have developed the ECOWAS Staff Officers Handbook and the ECOWAS Staff Officers Course to train ECOWAS Staff Officers and personnel in ECOWAS Peace Support Operations (PSOs).
The one-week intensive ECOWAS Staff Officers Course was opened at the Bakadaji Hotel, in The Gambia on Monday 8 July 2024, by the Commandant, KAIPTC – Major General (Maj Gen) Richard Addo Gyane as the Guest of Honour, and facilitated by the EPSAO Project.
The course is intended to enhance participants’ understanding of the broader framework within which ECOWAS personnel operate, and equip them with the necessary operational procedures specific to their roles.
It is also organized to contribute to the organisation, standardisation, and documentation of operating procedures at both ECOWAS Headquarters and the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF) Mission Headquarters, simplifying information flow and access for Staff Officers.
The KAIPTC Commandant, speaking at the opening ceremony, urged participants of the course to use the platform the course provides to share their skills, expertise, and good practices, as the organizers eagerly anticipate their feedback on all aspects of the course, which will enable to update the Staff Officers Handbook and refine the course for future participants.
Providing justification for the course, Maj Gen RA Gyane said the establishment of the ESF marked a significant milestone in efforts to address the peace and security challenges faced by West Africa, and that in recent years, substantial progress has been made towards fully operationalising the ESF, as part of the broader African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) and the African Standby Force.
That progress, providing valuable lessons and highlighting the need to enhance the capacity of civilians, police, and military personnel involved in Peace Support Operations (PSOs) in the Region, the General said it has become crucial that the key training needs of each component of the ESF be addressed, to ensure the successful execution of PSOs.
He continued to say that in 2007, ECOWAS designated three Centres, including the KAIPTC, as Training Centres of Excellence (TCE), with the mandate to respond to the training needs of the ESF.
The three Centres – one in Nigeria and the other in Mali – along with other training institutions, think-tanks, and civil society groups, play a vital role in building the capacities of uniformed and civilian personnel engaged in conflict prevention and multidimensional peace operations.
The course is supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation, Development, and the European Union (EU) through the EPSAO Project.
Present at the event included a representative of the ECOWAS Mission In Gambia (ECOMIG), Head of Mission – Mr Claude Kondor; Deputy Head of EU Delegation in Banjul – Mr Raphael Brigandi; Acting Head of PSOD ECOWAS Headquarters – Dr Adamu Suni; Director Training, KAIPTC – Colonel Barnabas Anorph Akanbong, Course Facilitators, and personnel awaiting deployments of the ESF in Member States, as well as ECOMIG, and missions in Guinea-Bissau.
Credit: KAIPTC CORPORATE AFFAIRS
