UNOCI Police trains local Force in Odienné

The Police (UNPOL) of the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI), as part of its mandate to strengthen capacity among local security forces, on 18 and 19 November 2013, organised training for members of the Gendarmerie, Police and prison Police in Folon and Kabadougou regions on "legal signing and marking" when carrying out criminal investigations.

The aim of the training session was to make participants more efficient and professional in carrying out criminal investigations.

On the first day of the training, the UNPOL trainer dealt with the studying of forensic police investigations, fingerprinting, signing and marking out a crime scene and the collection of the size, weight and proportions of dead bodies. The second day was dedicated to dealing with practical cases of digital fingerpriting.

The UNPOL chief of post in Odienné welcomed the interest shown in the training by participants. "We noticed an impressive turnout and strong interest in the programme from participants. We also noticed that participants included high ranking officers from the Gendarmerie and the Police," he said.

For Commander Koffi Yves of the Odienné company, the training has fulfilled a particular need among participants. "This training session is indispensable and is of capital importance, especially for our collaborators who need more professionalism in exercising their functions," he added.

At the end of the session, participants expressed the hope that the training would be continued in order to make the knowledge they had gained more complete. Some 40 people took part in the training.