The Commandant of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), Air Vice Marshal David Anetey Akrong, has paid a strategic visit to the German Armed Forces United Nations Training Centre (DEU UNTC) to strengthen institutional cooperation and exchange best practices in peacekeeping training.
The high-level engagement provided an opportunity for Air Vice Marshal Akrong to brief the Commander of the German Armed Forces United Nations Training Centre, Colonel Werner Klaffus, on the operations, strategic direction and growing international role of the KAIPTC.
Discussions centred on emerging security challenges, evolving peace support operations and opportunities for collaboration between the two institutions in advancing global peacekeeping capacity.
The visit also afforded the Ghanaian delegation first-hand insight into the German Centre’s United Nations Military Observer (UNMO) training programme, one of the Bundeswehr’s flagship courses for preparing personnel for UN peace operations. Beyond exchanging experiences, both institutions explored avenues for deeper cooperation in curriculum development, instructor exchanges, research and specialised training to enhance preparedness for multidimensional peace operations.
Established by the Ghana Ministry of Defence in 1998 and commissioned in 2004, the KAIPTC has evolved into one of Africa’s foremost centres of excellence for peace and security training. It remains the first and only institution on the continent to offer postgraduate academic programmes dedicated to peace and security while providing integrated training for military, police and civilian personnel involved in peace support operations.
Drawing on Ghana’s decades of distinguished contributions to United Nations peacekeeping missions, the Centre has become a strategic platform for capacity development across the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Africa and beyond.
In recent years, the Centre has expanded its international footprint through strategic partnerships with the European Union, Germany, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Government of Japan and other global partners. These collaborations have strengthened its digital learning infrastructure, introduced specialised courses in logistics and hostile environment awareness, and enhanced regional efforts to combat terrorism, violent extremism and emerging security threats under initiatives such as the Accra Initiative.
The KAIPTC has also trained thousands of military, police and civilian personnel from more than 90 countries, reinforcing Ghana’s reputation as a leading contributor to international peace and security.
The German Armed Forces United Nations Training Centre, headquartered in Hammelburg, Bavaria, serves as the Bundeswehr’s principal institution for preparing military and civilian personnel for United Nations and multinational peace support operations. Accredited by NATO, the Centre delivers specialised pre-deployment training, United Nations Military Observer courses and mission-specific programmes for German personnel and international partners, making it one of Europe’s leading peacekeeping training institutions.
The engagement underscores the growing defence and security partnership between Ghana and Germany and reflects the shared commitment of both countries to strengthening international peacekeeping through professional training, institutional cooperation and the exchange of expertise. As contemporary conflicts become increasingly complex, collaboration between centres of excellence such as the KAIPTC and the German Armed Forces United Nations Training Centre is expected to play an important role in preparing peacekeepers to respond effectively to evolving global security challenges.
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