The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Regional Peacekeeping Training Centre (RPTC) on from 28 April to 3 May 2025, successfully conducted a crucial Peace Support Operations (PSO) Curricula Validation Exercise in Johannesburg, South Africa. The week-long exercise marked a major milestone in advancing SADC’s capacity to train for complex, multidimensional peacekeeping operations.
This initiative focused on validating six new training courses whose curricula were initially developed in December 2024 and later refined in March 2025. The validation brought together over 40 technical experts from 14 SADC Member States; Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Eswatini, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Participants represented a broad spectrum of Peace Support Operations components, including Military, Police, Civilian, and Corrections sectors.
The exercise was further enriched by the participation of a technical expert from the African Union Peace Support Operations Division (PSOD), ensuring that the curricula are aligned with continental standards and priorities.
The validation process involved a comprehensive review of the course content, structure, and delivery methods, with the goal of ensuring relevance, operational effectiveness, and harmonisation with regional and AU frameworks. Once implemented, these validated courses will significantly enhance the region’s ability to prepare and deploy well-trained personnel in response to peace and security challenges across the continent.
The SADC RPTC extends its gratitude to the SADC Secretariat particularly the Directorate of the Organ on Defence, Security, and Cooperation for its ongoing strategic guidance and support. Commendations are also extended to the RPTC team for their dedication, as well as to all participants and experts whose contributions made this milestone possible.
By advancing harmonised training standards, SADC continues to play a key role in promoting peace, stability, and security across Southern Africa and beyond.
