The RTC Expansion
Published August 15, 2017
The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) established the West Africa Regional Training Center (RTC) to advance the U.S. government’s goal of dismantling transnational organized criminal networks and strengthening criminal justice capacity in West Africa. The RTC exists as a U.S. government international security initiative, which works with strategic stakeholders to effectively run an advanced training program in Ghana. In the last few months, there’s been a flurry of activity with the RTC relocating its facility and engaging additional staff to support its operations.
Setup in the auditorium for the Grand Opening in April 2017
With the growth and expansion of the RTC program, there was the need to relocate to a larger facility to enhance training activities. In April 2017, in a grand opening ceremony, the U.S. Ambassador to Ghana commissioned new RTC facility, in the presence of high-level Ghanaian government officials. The new facility has three training rooms as well as an auditorium for lecture-styled trainings. There are also multiple meeting rooms for breakout sessions as well as a large cafeteria space. With this new upgrade, the RTC will be able to facilitate multiple training programs at a time.
The RTC’s program management staff is also expanding. On the local front, a group of young, motivated individuals, work tirelessly to maintain the facility as one of the best in Africa. A U.S. Government Law Enforcement Training Advisor (LETA) provides strategic direction for the RTC and brings a wealth of experience, having worked for DEA for over 29 years. Together with RTC Program Officers, the LETA works to ensure that training needs within the region are met and reinforces efforts to build a strong RTC Alumni network. An Operations Manager also works with the LETA in supervising the staff, to ensure smooth training deliveries. Additionally, there’s the delegate and alumni coordination team, in charge of participant related logistics and data management. An accounts and finance team also oversees the fiscal management of the RTC and the IT/Production team is in charge of technology and course material production. The transportation and logistics team also ensures the provision of ground transportation for all our instructors and participants and help in the day-to day management of the center.
RTC Staff with some members from the CTP's Criminal Justice Programs (CJP)
CTP’s Criminal Justice Programs (CJP) group also supports this effort with a team of experts with extensive experience on international program development and implementation. The group is led by two retired DEA and FBI agents, bringing a wealth of knowledge and expertise on translating U.S. government policy into strategic and measurable outcomes. Together, they bring over 49 years of combined experience from working in Africa, South America and South West Asia, in advanced law enforcement leadership positions. Their overall vision for the RTC is focused on operationalizing INL’s goal through the development of effective strategies to strengthen security capabilities in West Africa. The team also includes Project Managers who are knowledgeable about security issues in Africa and creatively work to bring INL’s mission to life. The project managers focus on delivering high quality security assistance by adhering to strict performance and operational standards. They also focus on developing monitoring and evaluation tools that continuously assess and measure the impact of the program.
This formidable group of individuals brings innovation and expertise to the RTC program and is working to maintain the RTC as one of the leading law enforcement training facilities in Africa. The team, under the direction of INL works to create the best training experience that fosters collaboration between delegates from different countries and is building the infrastructure for enhanced engagement among African and America law enforcement professionals.
To advance the RTC’s mission, the staff continues to cooperate with INL to develop advanced programming to meet changing security trends in West Africa. If you have any questions for the RTC staff, please feel free to send an email to info@westafricartc.org