The difficulty of recruiting for EUCAP Niger. The language gap
(BRUSSELS2) If the head of mission has been appointed (read: A Spaniard at the head of Eucap Niger), The entire EUCAP Sahel Niger mission team has not yet been recruited. In particular, there is uncertainty about the number 2 of the mission. As for number 3, it should be an Italian, currently director of the European Gendarmerie Force. The mission's military adviser would be a Frenchman. And there would be - according to Belgian sources - 4 police officers and 1 expert from the Federal Public Service (Ministry) of Foreign Affairs.
Support functions, in default
In fact, if the management of the mission is more or less constituted, to recruit the agents responsible for supporting the mission (public markets, logistics, finance, etc.), it seems more difficult. For some profiles, there was no candidate or just one. This poses a serious problem and will prevent the rapid deployment of the mission. This is particularly due to the specificity of these functions - these are often the most difficult positions to recruit for the missions of the PeSDC - but also the language spoken. The requirement of French - which is logical for deployment in French-speaking areas - poses a problem for many Member States which may have candidates... but English-speaking.
The gap in French
Comment: It is paradoxical. Because French is normally the working language and compulsory language of the European External Action Service (EEAS). The European Union is paying here for an all-English policy that has been developed for several years, particularly in terms of foreign policy. Out of simplicity, out of a feeling of conformity, English has imposed itself in all structures at the expense of other languages. I have witnessed it several times. That one or two people out of an assembly of 30 or 40 people does not understand the language of Voltaire. And, hop, we "switch" in the language of the country of the rose. Selection interviews for certain missions, even in French-speaking countries (DR Congo for example) take place... in English! However, the whole planet is not unilingual. And the EU does not make enough use of its "diversity". This is a major mistake that needs to be remedied: with political impetus and, if necessary, support courses. We should find this difficulty again if the mission extends to other French-speaking countries in the region (Mali in particular). Or the day when it would be necessary to deploy a mission in Latin America (with Spanish).
