Eutm Somalia starts (5): a training combined with the Ugandans

(BRUSSELS2 to Bihanga) The European trainers arrived at the Bihanga camp at the end of April. The trip from Kampala took a few hours longer than usual, just over ten hours. The Europeans drove in convoys, escorted by the military. They were greeted... by the weather. Rains, even a real storm, forced us to navigate in the mud for a few days.

With the Ugandans, we can really talk about combined training. Which is not always obvious. Europeans and Ugandans therefore see each other every day: to jointly organize the training schedule and practical questions such as the organization of security in the camp (this is normally handled by the Ugandans). While waiting for the start of training with the Somalis, Ugandans and Europeans are therefore learning to work together.

At European level, too, we have to agree. A hundred trainers but 14 nationalities are present on the camp. Which is a challenge to organize the mission. "We have reached a new level of multinationality, which is not easy," commented an officer. "It's true" specifies Lieutenant-Colonel Alessandro Fiori, Force Commander: " we each have different ways of thinking between the Nordics and the Latins. Some prefer to design what they are going to apply next. The others prefer to implement even if it means redefining or tightening up afterwards. But we all have a common goal ". However, it is necessary to agree on certain common rules for the training of Somalis, to avoid contradictions. Meetings like these (photo below) are therefore held regularly, between the various training managers. For example, to define how to train officers, organize emergency clearance, etc. Chad, Lebanon, the Balkans... most of the soldiers present in Bihanga have already served in an international mission for NATO, the EU or the UN. This makes reporting easier. And, of course, communication takes place in English.

AK-47 training

The first day of joint training since the official start of the mission on May 5 (with the declaration of Full operational capability FOC) is rather surprising. It is... Europeans who are invited to come and discover the AK-47, the standard weapon of the African continent. Some complain about this return to their first classes. The Ugandan trainer does not let himself be dismantled. And maintain his authority. When the time for questions arrives, great silence. The trainer apostrophizes his one-day recruits (whose level goes all the same up to the commander): " I don't like it when I ask if there are any questions and nobody asks me anything. That means we don't understand "... It's enough. And the conversation begins.

This formation, seemingly absurd, is not so for two reasons. As one officer explained to me, very few Europeans, in fact, have the practice of this weapon rather rudimentary (which is now only in use in Austria apparently). And besides, in the practical exercise, assembly and disassembly of the weapon, very few have the dexterity of the Ugandans. Not useless then... It is also for a question of credibility. If a European trainer is surprised by his future students not knowing this weapon, " he is cooked commented an officer. Because it is with this weapon, common in Africa, that the Somalis will be trained by the Ugandans.

(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)