About UNCAP | DEPARTMENT OF OPERATIONAL SUPPORT

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Our Purpose

Our purpose is to harness the power of digital technologies to provide peacekeepers with the skills and knowledge needed to effectively protect lives and contribute to a more peaceful and stable world.

UN Peacekeeping Military and Police personnel—the “Blue Helmets” and the “Blue Berets”—have been an integral part of peace operations since 1948.

The uniformed women and men who serve as UN Peacekeepers are seconded to work with the Organization by their national armies and police services (Troop Contributing Countries and Police Contributing Countries (TCCs/PCCs)) in a tour of duty at peacekeeping missions around the world.

The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) branches and the Signal Units of these forces play a key role in the success of peacekeeping operations. Specialized uniformed ICT personnel serve under the blue flag as UN Signals. Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR); and Camp Security capabilities support day-to-day and crisis operations. Together, they act as key enablers and force multipliers to safety and security activities.

UN Signals and C4ISR and Camp Security specialists work alongside UN civilian personnel in the ICT and Geospatial Information Service (GIS) sections of the UN Missions. They augment these capacities and are responsible for the information flow between key elements of the military and police headquarters at Force, Sector, Battalion, and Independent Unit Headquarters levels; mission leadership and civilians—keeping everyone informed and ready to respond.

Cross-cutting ICT systems are provided by the UN to ensure that there is communication and information interoperability between the forces of the different countries serving a mission, since the national systems they bring to peacekeeping locations vary and often do not work across one another. This requires the military and police signals as well as the civilian C4ISR and Camp Security specialists to be familiar with operating and supporting UN-Owned Equipment, and to have a common understanding of UN standard operating procedures. These are two key objectives of the United Nations C4ISR Academy for Peace Operations (UNCAP).

Preparing Uniformed C4ISR Personnel for Their Service Under the Blue Flag

Our mission is to prepare peacekeeping personnel, as well as military and police from troop and police-contributing countries, for their vital roles under the UN flag, by enhancing their operational readiness and performance in key digital technology areas.

Originally established as the UN Signals Academy in 2015, the training centre was renamed the UN C4ISR Academy for Peace Operations in 2020. UNCAP is committed to enhancing the preparedness of military signals, police, and civilian peacekeeping C4ISR personnel—deployed and/or set to deploy into UN peacekeeping missions—with the skills and knowledge they need to function successfully in a UN environment and to perform at the highest levels.

The Academy was a key outcome of the first “Partnership for Technology in Peacekeeping” international symposium held in Brindisi, Italy, in 2014. The event aimed to bring more involvement to peacekeeping and enhance the technological cooperation between the UN military/police and UN civilian personnel. The idea for a signals training centre was proposed after identifying critical gaps in ICT capacity in the TCCs/PCCs and the need to build their capacity through targeted training. In response, UNCAP was approved as a viable project and launched several months later.

The training centre is located in Uganda at the Regional Service Centre-Entebbe. The programme is co-managed by the Department of Operational Support and the Operations Support Division of the Office of Information and Communications Technology at UN Headquarters in New York, United States of America.

The Academy represents a strong commitment by the Member States to work as one, fostering operational consistency amid the diversity of national forces that come together under the UN flag to foster peace in the world.

Through the generosity of such countries as Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Japan, Uganda and other Member States that have partnered with UNCAP and contributed training expertise, equipment, funding, and other valuable resources to the programme over the last five years—the school provides standardized, mission-specific, gender-inclusive training on UN-Owned Equipment as well as familiarization on UN policies and standard operating procedures.

Our Vision

Our vision is to be the foremost provider and preferred partner in capacity building for digital technologies, empowering peacekeepers to enhance operational readiness and effectiveness in creating a stable and secure environment, ultimately safeguarding lives and promoting global peace and security.

The UNCAP vision aims at establishing a seamless flow of information and communication for enhanced situational awareness and coordinated decision-making. Enhanced interoperability improves coordination, information exchange and collaboration among peacekeeping forces, leading to more effective mission outcomes by:

Prioritising the integration and interoperability of C4ISR systems across all components of peacekeeping operations. This includes military, police, civilian personnel, and international and regional partners.
Providing peacekeeping personnel with the tools and training to gather, analyse and disseminate relevant information in real-time. This includes leveraging sensors, surveillance systems, and intelligence analysis tools to improve situational awareness and support prompt and informed decision-making.
Promoting the development of agile and adaptive capabilities in C4ISR training. This involves equipping peacekeeping personnel with the skills to quickly adapt to changing operational environments, leverage emerging technologies, and effectively respond to evolving threats and challenges.
Emphasising the importance of collaboration and partnerships with technology providers, training institutions, and other stakeholders. This includes fostering cooperation in research and development, knowledge sharing, and joint training exercises to enhance C4ISR capabilities in peacekeeping operations.

Our Objectives

Greater coordination and interoperability between troops from various nations
Enhanced participation by women in peace operations
Economies of scale for mission operations
Strengthened C4ISR strategic partnerships

UNCAP training comprises hands-on experiences and in-classroom learning in the following areas:

ICT basics, including Radio communications, Satellite communications, Networking, Cyber Security and Spectrum Management
Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) technologies, in particular micro Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)
Camp security and Early Warning technologies, including terrestrial radars, Sense & Warn systems

Modules are also conducted in other UN official languages, primarily in French, given the substantial contributions made by French-speaking African TCCs/PCCs to peace operations.

Since graduating its first class at the end of 2016, UNCAP has expanded its pre-induction training to include dedicated trainings for ICT women in uniform and a Training-of-Trainers programme that prepares course graduates to train others in their contingents. The curriculum is updated on a regular basis to incorporate new technologies and changing requirements and standards.

Certified Graduates of the 12th Edition of the Women’s Outreach Course

A Tour of the Virtual Instructor Led Training Capability (VILT) at the RSCE

Practical Session with Participants of the Women’s Outreach Course at the RSCE Satellite Farm

Women’s Outreach Course Practical Session at the RSCE Technology Centre Satellite Farm

Member States and Other Peacekeeping Supporters are Invited to Get Involved

The value of the contributions made by partners of the UNCAP programme cannot be overstated.

A “Triangular Partnership” model whereby TCCs/PCCs, supporting Member States and the UN Secretariat—each with an equal stake in the programme—was adopted early on as a strategy for success and sustainability. They continue to work together so UNCAP can deliver and achieve optimal results:

TCCs/PCCs commit to sending their ICT personnel to UNCAP to prepare for their deployments to peacekeeping missions. Their troops and/or police receive capacity-building training and the equipment needed to achieve interoperability in a mission environment.
Supporting Member States contribute training expertise, equipment, funding, and other valuable resources that enhance and sustain the programme.
The UN Secretariat facilitates, plans and manages programme implementation.

UNCAP presents various opportunities to Member States and other interested parties to enhance the professional development of uniformed personnel from Member States that serve as our UN Peacekeepers. Strengthening their performance contributes to more effective implementation of given UN mandates and improves their safety and security. As peacekeeping work does not stop, neither should we.

If you would like to partner with us or receive information about the programme, please contact the United Nations C4ISR Academy for Peace Operations Programme Management at UNC4ISRAcademy@un.org.