Training Togo Battalion for Deployment with MINUSMA

9 - 13 February 2015, Lomé, Togo - UNITAR is complementing the African Contingency Operations Training and Assistance (ACOTA) Training Program in Lomé. The Togo battalion will integrate the UN peacekeeping operation MINUSMA to help restoring peace in the Republic of Mali. MINUSMA’s Chapter VII mandate includes the protection of civilians, support to the transitional authorities; facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance and the protection of human rights.

In preparing itself to contribute a battalion to MINUSMA, Togo through the UNITAR-ACOTA training programme aims to enhance its capacity and to acquire skills to align the troops’ knowledge and attitudes with United Nations norms and requirements.

During the weeklong training, UNITAR is delivering a UN pre-deployment module designed to provide essential knowledge that is required by military personnel in order to function effectively in a UN peace operation. The objective is to facilitate a shared understanding of the basic principles, guidelines, and policies which guide UN peace operations in the implementation of mandates specific to countries targeted.

Within the framework of the ACOTA Training Programme, UNITAR in its intervention addresses issues at the strategic, operational and tactical levels with about 30 staff officers and over 400 troops by familiarizing them with key elements of mission management structures as well as command and control within UN peace operations. The training clarifies matters such as the mission’s mandate, the centrality of human rights protection and the standards and values of UN peacekeepers. Discipline and conduct are also elaborated upon.

The training is delivered in close collaboration with ACOTA and under the overall coordination of the ACOTA Country Manager. This joint action is part of a long term collaborative approach to enhancing African Troops Contributing Countries’ capacities in participating in UN peace operations deployed in conflict-affected countries

 Photo: MINUSMA/Harandane Dicko