A regional workshop on protection of children during peace support operations started Monday at Rwanda Peace Academy in Musanze District. The director of the academy, Col. Jill Rutaremara, said the two-week training aims at equipping peacekeeping personnel with knowledge, attitude and skills on children rights. It brought together over 30 military and police officers and civilians from eight countries that are part of the Eastern African Standby Force (EASF). The Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Children, Zaina Nyiramatama, said the training would help protect children during armed conflicts. She said the workshop aimed at raising awareness on children’s rights protection and advocacy. Nyiramatama described the workshop as an appropriate platform for sharing best practices. Participants were drawn from eight EASF member states, that include; Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda and Rwanda as well as three officials from the EASF Secretariat in Nairobi, Kenya. The course is a result of collaborative efforts between the Rwanda Peace Academy, the EASF, and Save the Children International. Participants were optimistic the training would help them understand their role in protecting children in armed conflict in their respective countries and in the region.
