UN’s Standing Police Capacity completes training in UK

Ahead of their first operational deployment to Chad, the inaugural class of the United Nations’ Standing Police Capacity (SPC) has completed two weeks of intensive training in policies, doctrine, project management, team-building, transitional justice and other aspects of modern peacekeeping at the United Kingdom’s top police leadership centre.

Once fully operational, the SPC will have two main roles: to provide immediate start up capability on the ground for the police components of new United Nations peacekeeping operations and to facilitate rapid support and technical assistance on policing issues to existing UN missions as required.

“This course was extremely valuable in finalizing our training as a unit before we depart for our first mission, which is expected to be in Chad [MINURCAT],” said SPC Chief Walter Wolf.

“Organized crime, corruption and unprofessional practices present serious challenges to successful fulfilment of peacekeeping mandate so that it is essential to go into any such mission as well prepared as possible. This training ensured that the team is operational and fully prepared for deployment,” Mr. Wolf said.

Sixteen SPC officers attended the 8-19 October course, where they were mentored by senior trainers from several member states who led the group through real-time exercises based on actual policing scenarios. The SPC officers, which included five women, come from 14 Member States and have experience in more than two dozen peacekeeping operations.

“After completing this intensive course we now have the capacity to act as one cohesive, mutually-supportive team and to assist in start-up of future missions,” Mr. Wolf stated. He also expressed gratitude to the UK, Germany and Sweden for their support to the Department of the Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) in running this course.

The concept of the Standing Police Capacity was first suggested in 2004 by a blue-ribbon group of experts brought together by the UN to examine security threats in the 21st century. Member States endorsed the concept during their World Summit in September 2005 as a way to deal with the unprecedented demand for peacekeepers in general and UN police officers in particular.