“Strengthening the capacities of security agencies and personnel to protect the territorial boundaries and the populations of Liberia remains UNMIL’s top priority,” UN Police Commissioner Gregory Hinds said during the ground breaking of a training centre for Liberian security personnel in Foya, Lofa County.

Liberian security personnel have begun the gradual takeover of security in the face of UNMIL’s transition. Hinds joined scores of Liberian Government officials in late May 2014 to break ground for the construction of the training centre for members of the Liberia National Police (LNP) and Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization (BIN).

Hinds reassured the population that UNMIL will continue ongoing joint security patrols of all of Liberia’s borders to ensure security. He hoped the security training centre when completed would serve as a training hub for the Mano River sub-region to boost sub-regional security coordination.

UNMIL’s Quick Impact Project (QIP) financed the construction work in collaboration with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and is expected to become functional by October 2014.

A town hall meeting that comprised members of UNMIL, UNDP and local authorities was held to identify security challenges in the area, including shortage of logistics and inadequate capacity of security personnel.

BIN Commissioner Lemuel Reeves said the security training centre will serve as a “platform for broader coordination amongst security agencies, enhance citizens’ confidence in national security officers as well as serves as an excellent example of decentralizing security to district level.”