Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre Initiates Cooperation with the OPCW

The Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) is a regional centre of excellence where education, training and research concerning peace support operations (PSO) are delivered with the highest academic and professional standards. Whilst initially serving as a regional centre of excellence, the long-term vision and strategic plan of KAIPTC is to develop eventually into a state-of-the-art international facility for education, training and research embracing all aspects of PSOs.

Logo of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC)

The training and research programmes of KAIPTC cover a wide spectrum of subjects and participants or students come from diverse backgrounds including the military, security sector, diplomatic and non-governmental agencies, who are or likely to be involved in peace support operations. Thus, KAIPTC’s programmes target and offer regional and international participants the opportunity to develop and enhance their expertise on the operational aspects of peace support operations including best practices in the field of peacekeeping through specially designed conferences, lectures, workshops, seminars and computer-simulated training exercises.

The objectives of KAIPTC are to:

• provide mission-oriented training in PSO at the operational level for selected participants prior to their deployment in areas of operations;
• provide the operational focus in conjunction with the best tactical peace operations training provided at Koulikro (Bamako) Mali, and the high-level strategic training provided at the National War College;
• improve the ability of participants to operate in multinational environments of contemporary peace support operations and to cooperate with contingents from other countries;
• enhance participants’ knowledge about the nature and complexities of contemporary inter- and intra-state conflicts; and
• conduct research into the various facets of peace support operations.

Pursuant to these objectives and in view of the Centre’s constant search for partnerships to enhance its international reputation, particularly in the area of research and training, KAIPTC has initiated efforts to establish cooperative relations with the OPCW. In this context, a delegation of the Centre undertook a reciprocal visit to the OPCW on 11 and 12 November 2008 with a view to identify options for a collaborative training programme.

After that successful two-day visit, the possible areas of cooperation might involve:

• increasing knowledge about OPCW’s work as a cross-cutting theme in KAIPTC’s programmes;
• using KAIPTC’s contacts within Africa and particularly among the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to spread knowledge about the CWC and the work of the OPCW;
• enhancing implementation of the CWC through the involvement of the OPCW in KAIPTC flagship training programmes for both low- and high-level officials;
• OPCW could, where it deems appropriate, utilise facilities of KAIPTC to conduct its training programmes in Africa in assistance and protection, emergency response, etc; and
• inviting representatives of KAIPTC wherever possible to attend OPCW events in Africa, including relevant APB and ICB courses.

A brief history of KAIPTC

The Centre was established as a result of the heavy involvement of Ghana and other West African States in PSOs. This high demand for peacekeeping underscored the need for uniform standards of training for peacekeepers. To meet this requirement, a number of training schools have been established in West Africa aimed at providing different types of training to West African peacekeeping troops, as well as catering to the broader needs of the international community as a whole serving under the banners of the United Nations (UN), African Union (AU), and ECOWAS countries.

One major challenge for these peace support operations has been inter-operability and troops’ effectiveness in the field, which led to the realisation that effective and efficient performance and engagement in international peace operations would be best served if troops were trained to common standards. To achieve this objective, different governments in the West African sub-region with international donor support—both at the bilateral and multilateral levels—established centres of excellence to provide such training.

With its headquarters based in Accra, Ghana, KAIPTC executes operational level training for PSOs. This training is based on a military task force or brigade structure and the trainees are military, civilian and police officers functioning at that level. The National War College (NWC) in Abuja, Nigeria performs the strategic level training, which is the level at which PSOs are planned and led.

The training audience includes:

• Members States
• Defence and Security Commission
• the executive management/commissioners
• directors and advisers
• special representatives and force commanders
• community parliament
• the management of other ECOWAS institutions
• senior officials
• Expanded Mission Planning and Management Cell (EMPMC).

The majority of the participants are civilians. All courses complement each other and serve the broader interest of ECOWAS and its peace support operations, although a strict separation into tactical, operational and strategic may at times be superficial.

The work of KAIPTC is complemented by other centres involved in training and developing skills in both the theoretical and practical aspects of peace operations. The Government of Mali together with France, Canada and other governments have established a Peacekeeping Training Centre at Koulikoro, Mali. The headquarters of this training centre has moved to Bamako, the capital, and provides tactical level training at which PSOs are executed. In this context the facility focuses on the key elements required for carrying out the standing tasks and activities of a PSO. It is predominantly a military structure at the battalion and company levels with both police and civilian components.

KAIPTC was established in 1998 and in 2001 a Commandant and planning staff team were established. In January 2002 the vision to realise a centre of excellence materialised when the government of Germany made the first substantial financial contribution, totalling € 2.6 million, to enable the work of the Centre to commence. In addition, the government of the United Kingdom funded an “independent proof of validity” of KAIPTC, based on the recommendation of the Faith Berman Report, which was sponsored by the Department for International Development (DfID).

In May 2002 the United Kingdom funded another project on identifying best practices and development of the Centre’s curriculum. By September of that year the actual construction of the Centre’s headquarters commenced and by November, Phase 1 of the Centre’s construction was completed with funding from the governments of Germany and the United Kingdom.

The Centre was officially opened on 24 January 2004 under the patronage of His Excellencies the President of the Republic of Ghana, John A. Kufuor, and the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Gerhard Schröder.

*Colonel George McGarr OBE is Executive Director and Dr Kwesi Aning is Head of Research, KAIPTC

Categories: Africa, Assistance and Protection, National implementation, Outreach