NewsNews

 

News

 

SADC Combined Joint African Exercise (CJAX) 2011 Main Planning Conference (MPC) 14-16 March 2011

This MPC will be the first of 2 Work Groups in the build up to the CJAX 2011. The Final Planning Conference (FPC) is scheduled for 20-22 Jul 2011. The start point for discussion will be a review of the SADC CJAX 2010 Post Exercise Report (Ref A).
More...

Combined Joint African Exercise (CJAX) 2010 Working Group 8 - 10 March 2010

Held in the Peace Mission Training Centre Thaba Tshwane, Pretoria. Brigadier GeneraI S D Mashobane, Commandant South African National War College (SANWC) opened the Working Group (WG). He praised the work of the previous WGs, and stressed the importance of CJAX 2010 which would be keenly observed within SADC, and also more widely as it was the pilot exercise for the whole of the ACoC. He wished the WG good luck in its deliberations and hoped that solutions would be found to the various challenges that had been identified.
More...

Graduates of course 25-2009, Kenya Defence Staff College

Students from the Republics of Kenya, Botswana, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Sudan, South Africa and Zambia graduated after completing a 46-Weeks Course at the National Defence College in Kenya. More...

05 August 2009: Eastern African Regional Defence Chiefs Meet to Plan for the Training of a Joint Force

The meeting, which started yesterday, brings together the Defence Chiefs of Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Sudan and Rwanda. The meeting is being held to plan for the training of a joint force that will intervene in conflicts in the eastern African countries. More ...

30 July 2009: South Africa to Withdraw its Peace-Keeping Troops from Burundi

South Africa, whose troops were part of the peacekeeping mission in Burundi, will formally be withdrawing its troops and lowering its flag with effect from 8 August 2009. The withdrawal will be completed by the end of September. More ...

30 July 2009: UN Security Council Extends the UN Peacekpeeing Mission in Ivory Coast

The Security Council on the 30th of July extended the mandate of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) and the authorization of the French Forces which support the Operation until the 31st of January 2010, in support of the Presidential elections to be held in November of this year. More ...

30 July 2009: Mandate of UNAMID is Extended

The Security Council agreed at the end of last month to extend the work of the joint African Union-United Nations peacekeeping operation in Sudan’s Darfur region by another year and called for the UN to set out a plan to measure whether the mission is making progress towards achieving its mandate. More ...

27 July 2009: Children Demobilized in Darfur

36 children have been demobilized in the Darfur Region in a programme spearheaded by the Darfur Child Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) programme and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). UNAMID provided logistical assistance. The children are the first group with about 2000 children expected to participate in the DDR programme. More ...

 

24 July 2009: Lt Gen Nyamvumba of Rwanda to Head UNAMID From 1 September

Lieutenant-General Nyavumba of the Rwandan Defense Forces will be the next Force Commander of the joint AU-UN peacekeeping mission in the Sudanese region of Darfur. He will succeed General Martin Luther Agwai, who has served with UNAMID since the start of last year. More ...

 

30 June 2009: UN Peacekeeping Budget to Total 7.8M USD

The UN General Assembly adopted a peacekeeping budget approaching $7.8 billion for the period from 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010. The amount will provide for the Organization’s 14 peacekeeping missions, the support package for the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the Logistics Base in Brindisi, Italy, and the peacekeeping support account. For more details …

 

25 June 2009: UN Call for a New ‘Partnership Agenda’

The success of current and future operations depends on strengthening relationships between the Organization and its Member States, especially those providing troops and police.’ This was expressed by senior peace-keeping officials during the UNSC 6153rd Meeting. Read more ...

 

25 May 2009: Celebrating 'Africa Day'

Today, Africans will be celebrating ‘Africa Day’, a day that is observed with respect to the creation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), by its founding fathers on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Later in 2002, Durban, South Africa, the OAU became the African Union (AU). The theme for this year’s celebration is : “Towards A United, Peaceful and Prosperous Africa”, in which the element of a peaceful Africa is reflected, in line with the first strategic pillar of the African Union Commission dubbed “Peace and Security”, which is one of the four pillars of the AUC Strategic Plan, 2009-2012. The AU has organised activities marking the day, which will take place at the headquarters of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Read more ...  

 

15 May 2009: ACDS, Heads of Security, Military Staff and African Ministers of Defence Hold Meetibngs on the Operationalization of the African Standy Force (ASF)

The Sixth Meeting of The African Chiefs Of Defense Staff and Heads Of Security on the Operationalization of The African Standby Force (ASF) and The Military Staff Committee (MSC) was held on the 14th of May in, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Meanwhile, the Third Ordinary Meeting of the African Ministers of Defense and Security on the Operationalization of The African Standby Force (ASF) and The Military Staff Committee (MSC) took place the following day. Read More ...

 

14 May 2009: 100 More Ghananian Troops Join UN Peacdekeeping Mission in Chad and the Central African Republic

According to the United Nations News Centre, the MINUCART mission at its full strength will now include some 800 Ghanaian troops. Read More ...

 

30 Mar 2009: Egyptian infantry batallion joins UNAMID

The arrival of 200 troops from the second Egyptian infantry battalion is seen as a boost to the AU-UN hybrid Peacekeeping Force in Darfur (UNAMID). At present, over 12000 UNAMID troops are present across Darfur. Read More ...

 

30 Mar 2009: MONUC repatriates 640 war veterans and 914 dependents

Through its Disarmament, Demobilisation, Repatriation, Resettlement and Reintegration (DDRRR) programme, to repatriate 640 war veterans and 914 dependents, from 1 January to 24 March 2009. Read More ...

 

15 Mar 2009: MINUCART/EUFOR take-over

The United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT), on the 15th of March replaced EUFOR, the European Union force, whose mandate was expiring on the same day. Read More ...

 

02 Mar 2009: Military HIV/AIDS Prevention Conference is held in Botswana

The Botswana Defence Force (BDF) in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy in Botswana and the U.S. Department of Defense HIV/AIDS Prevention Program this week sponsored a conference on Military HIV/AIDS prevention. Read More…

 

24 Feb 2009: Lines between Peace-building and Peace-Keeping becoming more blurry

This is according to the Rwanda delegation presenting during the United Nations General Assembly Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations 208th & 209th Meetings. Read more…

 

23 Feb 2009: United Nations Peace-keeping Operations to undergo a thorough review in 2009

Due to the great challenges in peacekeeping operations especially posed by ‘complex mandates and difficult logistical and security environments’, the United Nations Peace Keeping Department (DPKO), is to undertake a thorough review of these operations in 2009. These according to Under-Secretary-General Alain Le Roy.

 

18 Feb 2009: AU Peace-Security Council reiterates its call for more troops for AMISOM

Expressing its deep concern at the prevailing security situation in Somalia during its 170th Meeting, The African Union Peace and Security Council reiterated its call on Member States to ‘urgently provide troops to enable AMISOM reach its authorised strength’. The council commended the Governments of Burundi and Uganda for their commitment to deploy an additional battalion each and to Nigeria, which pledged to deploy one battalion for the Somali Mission. This is according to a press statement released on earlier this month . Read the press statement.

 

23 Jan 2009: UN calls for revitalized global cooperation on peacekeeping

Stating that “2009 needs to be a year of ideas as much as a year of operational success”, Mr. Alain Le Roy, the Undersecretary General for Peace-keeping Operations has called for Members States to bolster, and in some instances mend, the global partnership that is needed for a healthy and well-functioning United Nations peacekeeping system. More …

 

23 Jan 2009: Uganda to host the UN Mission in Darfur (UNAMID)

On the 23rd of January 2009, the Government of Uganda and UNAMID signed a Memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the establishment of a UNAMID Liason Office in Entebbe Uganda. According to some press reports, the government of Uganda will facilitate the free, unhindered and expeditious movement to Uganda of all personnel, as well as equipment, provisions supplies and other goods, which will be for the exclusive use of the UNAMID Liaison Office at Entebbe as detailed in the MOU. More ...  

 

20 Jan 2009: Record number of Liberial Females Graduate in police training

A record number of 100 newly-trained women police officers, making up two-thirds of the cadets, have graduated after completing training for the Liberia National Police (LNP). The force now has 3800 officers, exceeding the targeted 3500 officers that the UN had set. More ...

 

14 Jan 2009: MINURCAT to take over peacekeeping in Chad and the CAR in March

On the 15th of March 2009, the United Nations Peace-keeping Mission in CAR and Chad (MINURCAT) will take over from the European Union Force (EUFOR) in the strife torn areas of Eastern Chad and the North-Eastern region of the Central African Republic. The 5500 strong peace - keeping personnel will be deployed following a Security Council decision on the 14th of January. More ..

 

14 Jan 2009: Australia to host the 2009 IAPTC Annual Conference

The 2009 International Association of Peace-Keeping Trainers Centres (IAPTC) Annual Conference will be held in October 2009 in Sydney Australia. The 15th Conference will be hosted by the Australian Defence Force Peacekeeping (on behalf of the Australian Defence Force) Centre and the Australian Federal Police. Last year, the Annual Conference was held from 6 - 10 October 2008 at the National Defence College, Abuja, Nigeria. The aim of the Association is ‘to facilitate communication and exchange of information between various peacekeeping training centres and/or among people responsible for, and interested in, peacekeeping training.’ Meanwhile, Bangladesh will be the host nation of the 16th IAPTC Annual Conference to be held in 2010.