Nigerian military officers on study tour

Brig. Gen. Yushau Mahmood, the team leader of a 21-member group of students from the National Defence College (NDC), in Nigeria, yesterday said Rwanda put lots of effort in rising above conflict which other countries, including Nigeria, can borrow a leaf to avert internal turmoil.He told reporters that it was important for countries like his to witness firsthand how the Rwandan government managed to overcome conflict.The trip to Rwanda by the team is part of their world geographical study tour.“The students are visiting 20 different countries in the world, this year. And the theme of the topic of our study is – post conflict peace building and national development in Rwanda, and that is why we are here,” Mahmood said.At the Ministry of Defence yesterday, the team were given a presentation on the current status and major engagements of the Rwanda Defence Forces.On whether the tour could help his country’s effort in dealing with the Boko Haram dilemma, Mahmood noted that every African nation has such ‘colonial creations.’“Every African nation has this type of problem, especially dealing with tribal, religious, or other issues. Therefore, we want to see how Rwanda was able to overcome the Genocide that occurred in 1994 and see how we could use the lessons from this country to avert such occurrences in our country, and in any other African country,” he said.Better known by its Hausa name - Boko Haram, meaning ‘western education is sacrilege’ is a jihadist terror organization based in northeast Nigeria.According to Rwanda’s Defence and Military Spokesperson, Brig Gen Joseph Nabamwita, the Rwandan and Nigerian armies have a strong partnership touching various areas.The two armies are the leading peace keeping troop contributors to the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), the largest peacekeeping mission in the world, whose Force Commander is Rwanda’s Lt. Gen. Patrick Nyamvumba.“The study tour they are conducting here is really not only about studying, but more about further strengthening the good relations between Rwanda and Nigeria, especially between the armies of the two countries,” said Nzabamwita.He said that an instructor exchange programme between the Nigerian institution and the newly established Senior Command and Staff College in Nyakinama, Musanze District, is being planned for the mutual benefit of the two colleges.