TUNIS, Tunisia – Subject Matter Experts from Allied Joint Force Command Naples conducted instruction on Civil-Military planning and support to include civil experts and disaster management capabilities in Tunisia, Nov. 21-25, 2016.
The experts from JFC Naples were part of a Mobile Training Team, or MTT, and are part of the unit’s Civil-Military Cooperation branch.
Conducted at the "EL AOUINA” Air Force Base, the aim of the mobile training mission was to introduce NATO civil military planning and support with a focus on emergency planning while describing NATO’s civil experts and disaster response management capabilities.
The JFC Naples team instructed 18 officers from Tunisia’s Armed Forces on topics including the mandate, mission and procedures thereof at the strategic and operational level. Furthermore, the training provided an initial overview on NATO mechanism and dynamics. The students also had the opportunity to receive a briefing from the Tunisian UNCHR Senior Protection Officer, Mr. Nabil Benbekhti, that highlighted the relation between the civil and military cooperation during emergency crises. Organizers said the syndicate activities were well received, and fruitful discussions allowed for an exchange of point of views and practical situations based on "real world” issues happening in a disaster emergency depicted in the case study. The possible courses of actions to face specific challenges was presented and discussed with the participants.
While addressing the group, the Deputy Commander of the Air Force base, Col. Mohamed Hajjem, expressed his gratitude to NATO and the JFC Naples MTT for such committed assistance. During his closing remarks, he also mentioned the importance of the cooperation between NATO and Tunisia and the possibility to have an improvement of this course next year, to bring the students to the next level of knowledge.
The JFC Naples' MTT activity supports NATO objectives and helps build the trust and understanding that will lead to better cooperation in the region and promote increasing interoperability with NATO.
Story and photos courtesy of J9