Interaction at its best
The CIMIC Centre of Excellence (CCOE) just recently closed the latest NATO CIMIC Field Worker and NATO CIMIC Staff Worker Courses. These NATO accredited courses are designed to train CIMIC Field and Staff Workers in parallel enabling the participants, Officers and Non Commissioned Officers NCOs, who are or will be appointed as CIMIC Staff Workers, to conduct CIMIC activities across the full spectrum of military engagement in a modern operational environment.
“If I had participated the NATO CIMIC Staff Worker Course at the beginning of my CIMIC carrier, I would have been able to perform better in missions and in my home Unit.”, said Major Stefan Mahne, DEU AF, participant in the NATO CIMIC Staff Worker Course.
Twice a year these course types are getting flanked by another NATO certified course, the NATO CIMIC Integrated Functional Specialist Course. This course is aiming to train a specific group of CIMIC Functional Specialists earmarked to serve as a CIMIC generalists in future.
“The integration of the NATO CIMIC Functional Specialist Course into the Field and Staff Worker courses was a great success as this approach enabled a desk-top exercise by the provision of realistic tasks, examples and solutions. Due to this setting, I expect that the knowledge obtained will last longer. I really appreciated the international student body working collaboratively towards typical CIMIC deliverables serving a modern operational environment. For a military reservist like I am, the course has added to my knowledge and skills applicable in civil and military life.”, said Stef Stienstra, participant in the NATO CIMIC Integrated Functional Specialist Course.
After the fundament was put down the first week, the second week was driven by a modern scenario and a variety of practical assignments aiming to transfer the knowledge and skills gained into praxis.
29 students representing 14 different countries graduated from this training event carried out to facilitate a maximum of interaction between the different course types.
Article is written by CCOE/ T&E Branch, Cpt Ralf Baur (DEU)
Pictures by: CCOE/ Dube