Thirty Police officers completed a two-week peacekeeping course on ‘Protection of Civilian (PoC).’
The course held at the Rwanda National Police (RNP) General Headquarters at Kacyiru, was conducted in partnership with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).
The Commissioner for Training at the RNP, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Berthélemy Rugwizangoga thanked the UNITAR for the partnership to develop the capacity of the RNP officers.
This year, in partnership with UNITAR, officers have been trained in different areas such as Training of Trainers (TOT), Women Commanders Training, Protection of Civilians and Individual Police Officers (IPO) course.
ACP Rugwizangoga reminded the trainees of the tasks ahead.
“The acquired knowledge and experience should help you to accomplish the mandated tasks to protect the vulnerable people in armed conflict or under any threats,” ACP Rugwizangoga told the officers.
He added: “This was a package for you to understand the international principles on the protection of civilians and to enhance your operating capacity in protecting vulnerable people affected by armed violence and conflict. Share the knowledge and skills with your fellow peacekeepers, who did not participate in this training.”
ACP Rugwizangoga said that training and capacity building is among the key priorities of the RNP to ensure that police officers continue to be well prepared for any law enforcement duties.
The PoC course looked at the international principles on the protection of civilians in war-torn zones, including special consideration for conflict-related sexual violence and child protection. (End)