HEAT Training in CAR

CSD received the request to facilitate a Hostile Environment Awareness Training (HEAT) for an international NGO in CAR.

The preparatory phase
We knew the recent pages of history in CAR were flocked with violent outbursts, clashes between communities and deterioration of all official institutes in country. The population is traumatized, minor conflicts deteriorate quickly in major clashes, law has not functioned for a long while, and small arms are present all over the place.
The four trainers had experience in Africa and unstable contexts, but none of them had field experience in CAR.
On top of it, we would arrive in the middle of the first electoral process in decades, organized by national and international agencies like MINUSCA.
As it often goes, we received the security plan from the hosting agency, and we carefully prepared our own security plan, along with CSD Head Office.
We decided that all kind of decisions would be premature; the 27th of December was the first day of elections. So we prepared all aspects of the training in thorough detail, but waited until the 29th for taking the decision to fly. Along with the management of CSD we perceived that the elections went well, to the astonishment of many, and the day after was a calm day too. So we took off.

Was it a risk? If it were a risky mission, we at least prepared every single step carefully prior to training. Let us call it ‘calculated risk’.

The training

We were able to provide a very participatory training, covering Security Management, Emergency First Rescue, Dealing with Aggression, Ammunition Awareness, Communication Skills, Field Security Skills, different kinds of close to real simulations, Dealing with Stress & Trauma, among other topics.

The participants were very interested and eager to learn. They all had different levels, but all of them were very enthusiastic about our hands-on language and approach. One has to bear in mind that there was no public school in CAR functioning in two decades, so addressing the participants with the right speech is of paramount importance.

The venue of the training took place in the (only) hotel having two venue rooms available in Bangui, heavily guarded by fully equipped soldiers and watchmen, so we had also to be careful with some simulations.

We had to resolve a lot of small logistic issues by ourselves, but that is part of life in these places of the world.

The result
In these places and periods, we were the only ones who could provide a French complete HEAT Training in CAR, and we are proud of the successful outcome of this training. This training gets a lot of attention of other NGOs, so we will be back for other training courses.

What started in Mali as a new layout of training, based upon existing modules, became a grown up cycle in Cameroon, and is now a much appreciated course by many organisations. It enables us to bring together all staff of different academic levels; 28 participants can be trained by 4 specialist trainers, all knowledgeably well in their field of competence and in training skills as such. Participation and interaction are key in the methodology.

And for the Central Africans?
The result of the second round of elections is about to be announced, hopefully it will happen in the same ambient as we experienced, which was quiet. The people were not lucky with the recent history, and they are fed up with violence and warfare. They deserve a better life, and they do realize.

CSD is pleased to have contributed by building Safety and Security capacity among the humanitarian actors in country.