International DDR seminar: participants carry out field visit in Bouaké

Participants attending an international seminar to share Côte d'Ivoire's experience in disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR), on Thursday, 6 November 2014, went on a field trip to Bouaké to see concrete evidence of the disarmament, resocialisation, training and reinsertion of ex-combatants. The seminar, which attracted participants from the West Africa sub-region, was organised by the Ivorian Authority for DDR (ADDR), the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Côte d'Ivoire, Mrs Aïchatou Mindaoudou took part in the field visit. She was part of a high-level delegation composed of the Director of ADDR, Fidèle Sarassoro, several ambassadors inlcuding France, Germany, Japan, and South Africa, as well as senior officials from UNDP and the United Nations Agency for Industrial Development, Ivorian officials and international DDR experts from the Central African Republic, Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo and the media.

The day's visit which started with a visit to disarmament workshops during which participants witnessed a simulation exercise on how an ex-combatant is disarmed and demobilised, also included other stages of the DDR process. Among these was a visit to the centre for the resocialisation of ex-combatants during which the high-level delegation saw the different modules and methods used to facilitate the reinsertion of ex-combatants into society once they return to civilian life

Explaining the main objectoves of the resocialisation phase, the Director of ADDR, Fidèle Sarassoro said that it helped the ex-combatants to gain self-confidence and reassured them they have a professional and societal life in the future.

The head of UNOCI, Mrs Mindaoudou expressed her appreciation for the way the resocialisation centre functioned. She thanked the ex-combatants for having agreed to put down their arms in order to take part in the resocialisation programme. She urged them to share the knowledge they acquire with those close to them.

«We are counting on you to become the impetus for good citizenship in Côte d'Ivoire after all the traumatic experiences you went through. I appreciated the excellent work that has been done in Côte d'Ivoire », she said, adding that she and the United Nations system remained ready to continue to support the work being done by ADDR. She also appealed to partners to support Côte d'Ivoire in attaining its objective so that June 2015 will mark the end of the DDR process in the country.

The field trip ended with visits to collective and individual reintegration sites like the centre for the conversion of plastic waste, a UN training centre at the Teacher Training College in Bouaké and a press conference.