Madagascar and Comoros naval and coastguard get Navy ship boarding training

On the request of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, (UNODC) the Sri Lanka Navy is conducting a specialised ship boarding training for naval and coastguard personnel of Madagascar and Comoros.

This training is carried out by the Navy’s elite, Special Boat Squadron (SBS) in Trincomalee and at Sri Lanka Coast Guard Training Centre Mirissa.

Six personnel from the Comoros Coast Guard and another six from the Madagascar Navy along with an interpreter from Madagascar are being trained on procedure and tactics in relation to ‘“Visit Board Search and Seizure’ (VBSS).

The training which began on May 3, 2016, will continue until the 28th.

This special training carried out on the recommendation of the UNODC, will be a positive approach for the Madagascar and Comoros defence personnel to fight against drug smuggling and sea piracy activities in the East African seas.On October 13, 2015, the Indian Ocean Region’s Senior Drug Enforcement Officials’ Meeting, which was jointly organized by the UNODC and the Ministry of Defence was held in Colombo.

The Navy’s elite SBS and Sri Lanka Coast Guard personnel carried out a demonstration of a mid-sea boarding and vessel searching techniques at the Port of Colombo. During the demonstration, the professional competency required for boarding a vessel at sea by using the advantage of surprise was highlighted.