Cooperative Security Activities: Logistics Brigade training team in Senegal completes deployment

• Military personnel of Logistics Support Group 81 have provided brigade-level logistics training to officers of the Senegalese Army

As part of the Cooperative Security Activities (ASC) carried out bilaterally between Spain and Senegal, a team of military instructors from Logistics Support Group 81 (Logistics Brigade), based in La Laguna (Tenerife), has been deployed to Dakar to support the training of the Senegalese Armed Forces. They have been offered training in logistics.

The knowledge imparted to Senegalese officers in these courses is of great interest to them. Although some military personnel have experience in logistics units, Senegal still lacks doctrine in this area and does not have enough officers who can train their personnel in this field. For all these reasons, the teachings and experiences of the Spanish military help them to generate their own doctrinal documentation.

On this occasion, the training aimed to train a group of Senegalese Army officers—16, to be precise—in logistics planning at the brigade level.  Over three weeks, this training programme included both theoretical and practical sessions. In these sessions, the team of Spanish instructors shared their knowledge and experience in planning and preparing logistical support manoeuvres for all the units that make up a brigade, as well as in carrying out all the logistical calculations required for such manoeuvres.

‘This is the first time I have participated in military training in Senegal,’ says Captain Paniagua, "and I have been able to witness the exemplary attitude and great professionalism of the students. The relationship between instructors and students has been close, respectful and fluid, allowing for an enriching exchange of experiences. Thanks to this collaboration, the students have acquired new skills and knowledge of logistics that will enable them to improve their professional capabilities; and for us, they have been an exemplary lesson in determination and interest in improving their training in the service of Nigeria."

Now it is time to return home with the satisfaction of having completed an activity that demonstrates Spain's firm commitment to the stability and security of the African continent, which is of vital interest to our own national security.

Cooperative Security Activities

In June 2014, Spain and Senegal agreed to strengthen their bilateral cooperation through joint training activities aimed at increasing or generating military capabilities in the Senegalese Armed Forces for the security of the African country and its population.  With this objective in mind, the Army and Navy are carrying out various military assistance activities involving advice and training with Senegalese units.

For Commander Joaquín Gómez Jiménez, ASC liaison officer in Senegal, "these courses taught by Spanish military personnel are of particular interest and benefit to both the students and their unit commanders. This is particularly true because they not only focus on the theoretical and practical aspects previously programmed in Spain, but also address the specific needs previously expressed by the Senegalese military and gendarmes. During the activity, it is clear that this is a great experience for both instructors and trainees, and also that the bonds of brotherhood between the Spanish and Senegalese military are growing stronger."