Spanish military personnel provide training in combating improvised explosive devices and combat medicine in Senegal

• Within the framework of Cooperative Security Activities, sappers from the Canary Islands Brigade and instructors from BRILAT have trained Senegalese military personnel in Thiès

 Two bilateral Cooperative Security Activities (CSA) have finished in Senegal. Both took place at Tactical Training Centre No. 7 in Thiès. The first focused on combating Improvised Explosive Devices (C-IED) and the second on combat medical training exercises.

For two weeks, a team of seven instructors from the 16th Sappers Battalion of the Canary Islands Brigade trained fifteen military personnel from the Senegalese Armed Forces in the recognition, marking and safe response to Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). The aim was to enable them to deal effectively with this type of threat. The training programme, which included theoretical and practical sessions, comprehensively covered all aspects related to IEDs (handling, identification, and physical and chemical characteristics of explosive substances). Practical exercises were also carried out with metal detectors, signalling and marking exercises, reconnaissance and assembly of landing zones, and safety procedures.

For the head of the training team, Lieutenant Alejandro García Ferrández, this was his second opportunity in Senegal, and he is convinced that ‘this bilateral cooperation improves the security and interoperability of our respective military forces, while strengthening training and safe procedures in the face of common threats.’

Combat medicine

On the other hand, a team of six BRILAT instructors delivered a three-phase programme on combat medical training to local military personnel. The first phase, entitled ‘Care under fire’, focused on the procedures to follow when there is an injured person and the contingent is under direct enemy fire. Next, the phase “Tactical Combat Care” focused on the medical treatment of the wounded once in a safe area, when their complete, orderly and safe assessment takes on special importance. In the third and final phase, “Tactical Evacuation”, the training focused on preparing for the evacuation of the wounded by their own means or by medicalised means.

As Lieutenant Márquez remarks, ‘the experience of training another army in these matters is rewarding and enriching, because it allows us to share our knowledge and practices so that they can apply them in their own field of action.’

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. To this aim, the Army and Navy carry out various military assistance activities involving advice and training with Senegalese units, which are planned and organised in advance according to Senegal's needs in the field of security and defence.

The training courses focus, among other aspects, on counter-terrorism, search and rescue missions, and infrastructure reconstruction with military capabilities and resources.