Kisangani, 19 June 2012 – From 16 to 20 June 2012, Twenty five officers and non-commissioned officers of the FARDC 9th Region gathered in Kisangani, Province Orientale, in the framework of a continuous training of trainers in the prevention of sexual violence and protection of civilians.

The 25 participants had already been trained last year during the first phase of this programme. This time again, they will have to pass on the new lessons received from their colleagues to their respective units.

This second phase of the training was organized by the FARDC Civic and Patriotic Education Service (Service d'éducation civique et patriotique), with funding from the Stabilization and Reconstruction Plan for Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (STAREC) and technical support from the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the European Union Mission of Assistance for Security Reform in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (EUSEC).

This training is part of a comprehensive programme developed for the Orientale and Sud-Kivu provinces. The selected modules focused on democracy, security sector reform, the Congolese judicial system, human rights, child protection, international humanitarian law, gender in the defence sector, sexual violence legal framework and the military code of conduct.

Codjo Houegniglo/ MONUSCO