Accra: The Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), with support from the German government, has successfully brought to a close a one-week pilot course on “Hostile Environment Awareness Training” (HEAT).
The week-long course enhanced the knowledge of prospective participants on hostile mission environments, and provided them with the skills to operate in such environments, as well as pragmatic ways of addressing/handling the risks they will encounter.
Given the reality that mission environments are typically unfriendly, especially considering the general living conditions, the weather, language, food, conflict, epidemic, just to mention a few, mission personnel need the requisite training to successfully work in such crises environments. They must be equipped with the right knowledge and skills to tackle future challenges and survive in such critical situations.
Aside classroom sessions, participants undertook practical sessions such as map reading and navigation, and also experienced a practical drill session at the Bundase military training camp. These sessions increased participants’ preparedness and awareness on risks in postwar conflict/mission environments.
Subject-matter experts were drawn from the Ghana Armed Forces, Heidelberg University in Germany and KAIPTC.
The KAIPTC is one of the three (3) Peacekeeping Training Centres of Excellence mandated by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to offer training in peacekeeping and peace support operations (PSO) in Africa. It has since its inception trained and tutored over 21,000 students and participants.
For further information, please contact the Corporate Affairs Unit of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) on +233302-718200 ext 1104/1203 or +233 550 303030. You can find the KAIPTC on Facebook and twitter as: @Kaiptcgh. You can further find out more about the KAIPTC on our website: www.kaiptc.org.
About the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre:
The Ghana Ministry of Defence (MoD) established the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) in 1998 and commissioned it in 2004. The purpose was to build upon and share Ghana’s five decades of internationally acclaimed experience and competence in peace operations with other states in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region and the rest of Africa. This was in recognition of the need for training military, police and civilian men and women to meet the changing demands of multidimensional peace operations. The Centre is one of the three (3) Peacekeeping Training Centres of Excellence mandated by the ECOWAS to offer training in peacekeeping and peace support operations (PSO) in Africa.
The Centre delivers training courses in three thematic areas; Peace Support Operations, Conflict Management and Peace and Security Studies and also runs Masters and PhD programmes in same. The KAIPTC has a world-class research department that undertakes research in the thematic areas in Peace and Security. Located in Accra, Ghana, the KAIPTC is an internationally recognised institution and has to date trained and tutored over 21, 496 participants and students since its inception.
KAIPTC is a gender-sensitive organisation and committed to gender equality. Following the launch of its gender policy in 2014, the Centre has mainstreamed gender into its policies and programmes, and integrates same in its focal areas, namely training, research and postgraduate education. The Centre has developed a Sexual Harassment policy and fully oriented employees on same. It has also provided a Nursing and Childcare Centre and instituted a paternity leave policy, all with the aim to create a conducive work environment at KAIPTC.