From 4 to 14 April, the United Nations Office to the African Union participated in the pre deployment verification of the Burundi National Defence Force contingent scheduled for deployment to the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia.
The assessment was conducted at the Mudubugu Peace Support Training Centre in Bujumbura and focused on verifying the contingent’s operational readiness prior to deployment. The team received briefings on troop composition, deployment plans, training progress, documentation and medical preparedness, followed by inspections covering operational, logistical, medical and administrative components.
The contingent completed 12 weeks of pre deployment training, including mandatory training, staff and junior leader preparation, medical readiness, counter improvised explosive device awareness, conduct and discipline, and compliance with international humanitarian and human rights law.
Practical drills assessed areas such as base protection, civilian screening, crowd control and responses to armed group contact. The contingent comprises 1,934 troops, including 38 women, with more than half having previous deployment experience in Somalia.
UNOAU’s participation supported AU efforts to ensure deployment readiness and strengthen assessment standards for peace support operations.
