35 Trained in national security, defence policies

It brought together 35 personnel from the armed forces, police, fire and prisons services, the Interior Sub-Committee of Parliament, the Narcotics Control Board and Civil Society, the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) and the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) to deliberate on the theme: 'Managing Defence in a wider Security Context.'

It was funded by the British Government through the Canfield University.

Topics treated included security reforms, the role of the national peace council and placing gender in the matter of security.

Addressing participants at the closing ceremony in Accra, the Defence Minister, Mr Mark Owen Woyongo, said, 'It is my expectation that you will go out from here and positively contribute to the realisation of the key tenets of this course, especially in the promotion of professionalism, efficiency and effectiveness in the security and defence, as well as public sectors.'

Mr Woyongo urged the participants to apply the knowledge acquired to promote democratic governance in Ghana and Africa.

According to the minister, the course was expected to help Parliament deepen its understanding of the dynamics in the running of the defence and security sectors.

The Commandant of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), Maj. Gen Obed Boamah Akwa, described the training programme as a strategy to revive the concept of defence and security in the country.

'We want to achieve integration, cohesion and to have a deeper look into the way security is managed in Ghana,' he said, and added that the 'security services are doing their best in this challenging circumstance the nation is facing'.

By Jennifer Ansah/Daily Graphic/Ghana