Rwanda National Police

Twenty six people from nine Eastern Africa Standby Force (EASF) member states, on Monday, started a two-week course on Gender Mainstreaming, Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) at the Police Training School (PTS) Gishari, in Rwamagana District on Monday.

Trainees include Police, military and civilians from the host Rwanda, Comoros, Ethiopia, Kenya, Seychelles, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda and allied participants from Norway.

It’s intended to address issues regarding concepts of gender mainstreaming, SGBV causes and forms in Post conflict situations. It further provides participants with skills, knowledge and techniques of investigating cases related to SGBV during conflict situations.

The commandant of PTS, Commissioner of Police (CP) Vianney Nshimiyimana, while opening the course, said that training is an effective measure to address most of the challenges in regard to contemporary policing and to enforce national laws.

“This course is very paramount to Rwandans as a post genocide country, on one hand, but also in line with functions in peacekeeping operations in region and across the globe,” CP Nshimiyimana said.

The course is line with developing capacity and capabilities of EASF for future deployment in Peace Support Operations.

“This course answers most of our enduring questions in the protracted struggle to professionalize our police forces. Such crimes thrive in insecure and chaotic countries where most of you will be deployed for your peacekeeping missions, and you will be expected to investigate and handle such crimes efficiently,” the commandant said.

The head of Police Component at EASF, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Dinah Kyasiimire, observed that SGBV has devastating long term effects on the lives of victims, their families and communities, and impedes development.

EASF is one of the five regional forces for Peace Support Operations (PSOs) with multidimensional components that consist of military, police and civilians, and mechanism to provide capability for rapid deployment and intervention, peace support and peace enforcement.