Senior South Sudanese military and police officers, who are in Rwanda for training, were on Thursday told that armed forces play a key role in reconstruction of a post-conflict nation. The 25 generals are undergoing a course on post-conflict peacebuilding, which started on Monday at Rwanda Peace Academy, in Musanze District. The five-day course dubbed ‘Senior Leadership for Post-Conflict Peacebuilding and Reconstruction Course’ examines the efforts of peacebuilding and reconstruction of South Sudan, with an emphasis on the role of the military in ensuring sustainable peace. The generals are in the country partly to learn from their counterparts the role they have played both in the aftermath of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, beyond its core mandate of maintaining peace and security. Major General (Rtd) Ambassador Frank Mugambage, Reserve Force Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of production told the generals how the Rwanda Defence Force has engaged in socio-economic development, beyond its responsibility of ensuring security and stability of the country. In performing its role of nation-building, the RDF has been involved in various activities, including infrastructure development, agriculture and health services, Mugambage said. Those activities are carried out in the context of civil-military cooperation, especially the annual RDF community outreach programme, known as the Army Week. He also noted that good leadership and national unity have been crucial elements in Rwanda’s reconstruction journey. The Integrated Development Programme (IDP) model village is one of the initiatives in which the Reserve Force plays a major role and the initiative has transformed thousands of lives, he said. One of the South Sudanese generals said that learning from Rwandas post-1994 experience gives them an opportunity to see what can be done in their country. Our contexts are different, but there are many things we can learn from Rwanda: For example, how the Reserve Force are working with different ministries to contribute to the socio-economic development of the country, and many more projects, said Major General Juac Nathan Garang, acting Chief of Administration and Personnel in the South Sudan Peoples Defence Force. The Senior Leadership for Post-Conflict Peacebuilding and Reconstruction Course is being held under the banner of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) in partnership with Rwanda Peace Academy.
