POC At Kofi Annan International

Given The Global Nature Of Warfare And Its Devastating Effects On All Actors – State And Non State A Two Week Extremely Important Course Dubbed Protection of Civilians

POC has begun at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) to equip people involved in peace operations to mitigate the effects of conflicts on civilians.

The second POC Course in 2023, one of the flagships at West Africa’s elite Training Centre of Excellence (TCE) – KAIPTC, began on Monday 8 May 2023, with 24 participants from 12 countries Burkina Faso, Burundi, Congo, Ethiopia, The Gambia Germany, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, Somalia, and Uganda.

Millions of civilians are subjected to forced displacement, hostage-taking, rape, torture, extrajudicial executions, and massacres as a result of violence and war.

Classical warfare, involving the armed forces of two or more states, is no longer improbable, as evidenced by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Non-international armed conflicts, in which official armed forces clash with non-state armed groups, remain prevalent.

The fundamental principle of distinguishing between civilians and combatants, as well as civilian and military objectives, is frequently challenged. With severe consequences for civilian populations, and is frequently the source of numerous and serious violations of international humanitarian law, human rights law, and refugee law.

The weaker combatants frequently resort to illegal international law violations, such as deliberate attacks.

The United Nations (UN) first explicitly stated the protection of vulnerable populations as a key objective in the revised mandate of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) in 2000. And since then has authorized several additional peacekeeping missions that explicitly include protection of civilians as a core task of the mandate.

KAIPTC, one of ECOWAS’ three endorsed TCEs, conducts research and training in peacekeeping programs and activities, and has trained over 25,000 military, police, and civilian personnel for various peacekeeping operations around the world since its inception in 2004.