English
Kinyarwanda
Twenty-one police officers from Eastern Africa Standby Force (EASF) member states are in Kigali for a three-day Police Generation Capacity Building Workshop aimed at providing strategic and technical guidance on preparing personnel for deployment in EASF peace support operations.
The workshop started on Monday, September 14, at Rwanda National Police (RNP) General Headquarters in Kacyiru and brings together police officers from Burundi, Kenya, Sudan, Zimbabwe and Rwanda.
Officially opening the workshop, the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIGP) in charge of Administration and Personnel, DCG Jeanne Chantal Ujeneza, commended the continued efforts of EASF and the African Union (AU) to strengthen regional preparedness for peace support operations and enhance Africa’s capacity to respond effectively to peace and security challenges.
“The Rwanda National Police greatly appreciates the continued efforts of the Eastern Africa Standby Force and the African Union in strengthening regional preparedness for peace support operations and enhancing Africa’s capacity to respond effectively to peace and security challenges,” DCG Ujeneza said.
She said the workshop provides an opportunity to strengthen a common understanding and approach to preparing police personnel for peace support operations, including capacity and capability building, assessment, verification and the rostering of individual police officers and police units.
“Effective peace support operations require more than the availability of personnel. They require properly identified, prepared, assessed, verified, and deployable capabilities,” she said.
DCG Ujeneza noted that the police component plays a critical role in peace support operations, particularly in the protection of civilians, maintenance of public order, and support for peace and security.
She said RNP remains committed to regional and continental operations and to strengthening Africa’s capacity to prevent and manage conflicts and respond effectively to peace and security challenges.
She encouraged participants to engage openly, share experiences and focus on practical, solutions-oriented discussions.
“I encourage all participants to engage actively, share experiences candidly, and work together towards concrete and actionable outcomes,” she said.
She added that discussions on capacity-building initiatives, mission readiness and capability assessments, rostering and verification, as well as the Kigali Workshop Roadmap, provide opportunities to harmonise approaches and improve the readiness of pledged police capabilities.
The Head of the EASF Police Component, Colonel Mellance Ntakiyiruta, thanked Rwanda for the warm reception accorded to the delegation and the arrangements put in place to ensure the success of the workshop.
He said the discussions will focus on key areas, including member states’ responsibilities in identifying, nominating, preparing, pledging, building the capacity of, training, rostering and verifying police personnel and capabilities.
Col. Ntakiyiruta said the Government of Rwanda has demonstrated commendable commitment in this area and that the visit is intended to further support and strengthen that commitment.
