VISIT TO NIGERIAN COMMAND AND STAFF COLLEGE AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 001997 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/30/2014 TAGS: PREL MARR PHUM KPKO NI POLMIL SUBJECT: VISIT TO NIGERIAN COMMAND AND STAFF COLLEGE AND INFANTRY SCHOOL PEACEKEEPING WING Classified by Ambassador John Campbell for Reason 1.4 (D). ¶1. (U) Summary. The USG-funded JCATS simulation center at the Nigerian Command Staff and College is actively training Nigerian brigade and battalion command elements, and has recently included police units in joint internal security simulations. Funding and personnel shortfalls from the GON limit operations to 60 percent of capacity. The co-located Infantry Corps Center and School (ICCS) has founded a Peacekeeping Wing with the aim of providing collective tactical training and peacekeeping doctrine for the Nigerian military. The Airborne Wing of the ICCS recently upgraded their parachutes to MC1-1Bs and is using Dornier Do-228s as their airborne platform. End Summary. ¶2. (U) On November 29, 2004, the Ambassador, Defense Attache, ODC Chief and PolMilOff visited the Nigerian Command and Staff College and the Infantry Corps Center and School in Jaji. The Ambassador was briefed on the status of American-funded JCATS Simulation Center, and the Peacekeeping and Airborne Wings of the Infantry School. ¶3. (U) Rear Admiral Izilein, Deputy Commandant of the Command and Staff College, spoke about the College and the Simulation Center. He said that the College has a staff strength of 1250 and a student population of 458. The College conducts a senior course for officers in the rank of Major/Lt Commander, a junior course for officers in the rank of Captain/Lieutenant (73 officers graduated Friday, November 26),and a duty officer course for NCOs. Foreign military enrollment includes, among others, South Korea, South Africa, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Chad, Mali, Morocco, Botswana, and Niger. ¶4. (U) Brigadier General EE Eyo, the Director of the Simulation Center, said the three largest constraints limiting their ability to expand training are a lack of funding, a shortage of trained manpower, and the absence of a staff development program. Despite these limitations, the Simulation Center has expanded its operations to include internal security simulation exercises for police units from Kaduna, Jos, and Kano and has recommended to Defense HQ that all units go through a simulation exercise prior to deploying on peace support operations (PSOs). ¶5. (C) MPRI, the U.S. contractor supporting the Simulation Center, concurred with the constraints described by Eyo and estimated that the simulation center is operating at 60 percent capacity. The lack of funding limits the ability of students to attend training as travel, lodging, and subsistence can not be funded. MPRI also said that most of the cadre of the Simulation Center are routinely paid 1-2 months late, with occasional delays of 3 months or greater. ¶6. (U) Major General OM Appah, the Commandant of the Infantry Corps Center and School (ICCS),and Brigadier General SP Guar, his deputy, provided a briefing on the newly-opened Peacekeeping Wing. Initial course offerings include Basic Training Techniques and a Junior Leaders Train-the-Trainer Course, with a goal of providing a Military Observer (MilOb) course and a UN Logistic Officer Course in ¶2005. The focus of the school is on the development of tactical skills and the formulation of PSO doctrine based on lessons learned (Note: MG Appah specifically pointed to doctrine formation as an area where U.S. assistance would be welcome. End Note.) A UK Short-Term Training Team (one officer and one NCO) was actively assisting with training of the current 45 students. The goal of the center is to provide training to 4000 students per year, to include battalion-level unit training. ¶6. (U) At the Airborne Wing, MG Appah described the three courses taught (basic airborne, advanced airborne jumpmaster, and parachute rigger) and the equipment used by Nigerian paratroopers. There has been a recent shift from T-10 parachutes to the MC1-1B. PolMilOff observed 336 unopened boxes of main personnel parachutes, and a large quantity of unopened reserve parachutes, all labeled as manufactured in South Korea. Staff at the school identified the Dornier Do-228 as their primary aircraft for airborne operations due to the nonavailability of functional C-130s or G-222s. CAMPBELL