Brigadier General George M. Itang'are, Military Advisor the Permanent Mission of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United Nations (left), receives the JFCNP crest from Lt Col Luigi Cipri, J9 MPB.
Tanzanian Peacekeeping Training Center, Dar es Salaam / "Msata" Training area, Bagamoyo, Tanzania – A JFC Naples Military Partnership Branch representative observed an Evaluation Training event and Military Skill Validation (MSV) of the Tanzanian Infantry Battalion to Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) from 9-19 November 2021, in Dar-es-Salaam, Msata training area.
These training events fall within the Defence Capacity Building (DCB) Package for UN Peacekeeping Training. Through the DCB Package, NATO shares its experience and contributes to projecting stability by catalyzing the efforts to strengthen and reform UN peacekeeping.
Cooperation through the DCB Package also provides an opportunity for NATO experts to benefit from the UN's experiences and lessons learned, which consequently could contribute to improving NATO standards and procedures.
The aim of the training event was to support the development of a UN-specific military performance evaluator course to educate and qualify TCC personnel as trainers (capable of planning, preparing and conducting performance evaluations during TCC self-certifications) and to prepare TCC Military Staff Officers (MSOs) for deployment in UN peacekeeping missions. UN evaluators are also tasked to help TCCs to fully align with the UN framework and performance standards. This iteration was the very first trial.
The MSV took place in Msata training area, Bagamoyo. MPET, supported by course participants, carried out the validation of the Tanzanian Infantry Battalion to MONUSCO, Force Intervention Brigade (FIB). During this phase, students put into practice all learning objectives discussed during the course and were under the supervision of MPET. Both individual and collective military skills were validated with professionalism, impartiality, and objectivity to assure that the contingent met the required level of operational readiness to conduct mandated tasks in MONUSCO.
The objectives of the event were achieved. The UN team, led by MPET, qualified a total of 15 students (including 13 students from the TZE Armed Forces, 1 representative from MONUSCO and 1 representative from NATO) and successfully conducted the MSV of the Tanzanian Infantry Battalion 9. Across the MSV, the unit demonstrated sufficient capability to deploy into a high-risk environment.