Mali: three major facilities inaugurated as part of the PARSEC project

Published on 30/01/2020

International security, stability and peace

GLOBAL THREATS AND ORGANISED CRIME

Mali

On 28 January, as part of the PARSEC project, Expertise France delivered an interservice maintenance workshop for repairs for the various security forces in the Mopti region, an equipped barracks for a Gendarmerie unit and a hanger for the Cessna 208 Caravan aircraft. PARSEC, which is financed by the European Union, is contributing to supporting the Government of Mali’s efforts to strengthen the rule of law and security in the country, particularly in the Central region.

The hangar for the reconnaissance aircraft, the interservice maintenance workshop and the barracks of the National Gendarmerie surveillance and intervention unit of the Mopti region (PSIG) were delivered to the Ministry of Security and Civil Protection (MSPC) at a ceremony in Sévaré.

Facilities ready to be commissioned

The works, which were supervised by Expertise France, were accompanied by capacity building activities for the security and defence forces related to the facilities built or refurbished and the equipment delivered.

The interservice maintenance workshop, which will be used for the maintenance of the equipment of the various security forces (armed forces, gendarmerie, national guard, police and civil protection), has been refurbished and equipped with tools and spare parts. Furthermore, in November 2019, the interservice workshop team benefited from specific training on garage management (maintenance operation, spare parts management, storage, etc.).

The Gendarmerie unit, which the new barracks are intended for, has also benefited from several training activities, as well as individual and collective material and equipment.

Finally, the Cessna 208 reconnaissance aircraft, which was handed over to the Malian authorities in April 2019 as part of PARSEC, was also delivered with the required training. The first 200 flight hours served to fine tune the control of its handling prior to its permanent deployment in Sévaré.

Cessna 208, an effective tool to monitor the territory

In late 2018, the Cessna 208 aircraft was used by the Malian Air Force for observation missions in the Mopti region.

Its already intensive activity illustrates the great need of the Malian authorities to have an effective tool for the rapid collection of information in areas that are difficult to access.

In civil use, this aircraft is considered to be very efficient due to its speed, reliability and high-tech equipment. It especially allows to take aerial photos with a very high level of precision in the context of securing the territory and the crisis response, in particular in the border area with Burkina Faso.

Contributing to security and development in central Mali

These activities are part of the Support Programme to Strengthen Security in the Mopti Region and for the Management of Border Areas (PARSEC), which is financed by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund with EUR 29m.

PARSEC focuses on the geographical perimeter of the Mopti region, in central Mali, and is supporting the efforts of the Malian authorities and their international partners for the stabilisation and economic and social development of this fragile area. One of its objectives is to strengthen the capacity of the Malian gendarmerie units and civil protection to carry out their mission among populations.

PARSEC is part of a broader European Union action to jointly support security and development in the Central area of Mali, resulting from the Integrated Security Plan for the Central Regions (PSIRC): support for restoring security, support for the dialogue between the population and the defence and security forces and, finally, the return of basic services and activities to boost the development of the local economy.