Abstract

Contemporary peacekeeping training differs significantly from the training of the Cold War era that placed greater emphasis on combat and occupational skills. In recent times, the nature of peacekeeping has changed and now involves several actors such as the police, civilians, and the military performing different functions in fulfilment of the mandate of today’s complex peace support operations. In response to the rapidly evolving roles of peacekeeping and the high demand for peacekeeping personnel since the 1990s, coupled with the perceived reluctance and inability of the international community, specifically the United Nations (UN), the body charged with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security to intervene in a timely fashion in Africa’s conflicts, regional and subregional organizations in Africa have assumed a greater role in conflict management, resolution, and peacekeeping, as well as training peacekeepers to complement efforts being made by the overstretched UN in that respect.