Seychelles Coast Guard Begins Basic Training
On Friday 24 January, the Basic Training Program for the Seychelles Coast Guard was officially inaugurated by the Chief of Staff of the Seychelles People’s Defense Forces, Colonel Clifford Roseline, the Acting Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard, Lieutenant Colonel Simon Dine, and the Head of EUCAP Nestor, Etienne de Poncins.
The Basic Training Program is a newly developed 27-week foundational training program for privates recently recruited to the Seychelles Coast Guard. There are 21 privates who have been selected to take part in the program.
“This training program is really a first of its kind for the Seychelles Coast Guard,” said Etienne de Poncins, Head of Mission for EUCAP Nestor. “It provides a comprehensive program covering the full range of Coast Guard functions.”
“This program could become a model for the other countries in the region,” said de Poncins.
EUCAP Nestor has worked closely with the Coast Guard in developing the program, its syllabus, and the individual modules. EUCAP Nestor will also be providing experts to support the Coast Guard trainers who will deliver the training.
“The Basic Training Program will provide our men and women in the Coast Guard with the wide range of tools they need to perform their duties,” said Lt Col Dine, the newly appointed Commanding Officer of the Seychelles Coast Guard. “It will build our capacity and enable us to ensure maritime security in our waters. I am grateful to our European partners for their unwavering support”
The inauguration was held in the SPDF Defense Academy on Isle Perseverance next to the Coast Guard base. In attendance were the 21 trainees along with a number of dignitaries, including the Ambassador of France, Madame Genevieve Iancu.
The program includes modules such as Maritime Domain Awareness; Seychelles maritime regulations and legislation; seamanship and navigation; marine engineering; border and excise control; maritime safety; maritime security; crime investigation; environmental response; and fisheries enforcement.
An important element in the program is to ensure that it is self-sustainable and can become a regular feature of the Coast Guard’s annual training. Other Seychelles agencies involved in the maritime domain will support the program with training modules.
EUCAP Nestor is a civilian EU mission, under the so-called Common Security and Defense Policy, mandated to assist countries of the Horn of Africa and Western Indian Ocean develop their capacities and capabilities to ensure maritime security, in particular counter-piracy and maritime governance.
eucap-nestor.eu