Community Liaison Officer Course
Who is this course for?
Designed for those who are not currently MRE/CL certified or wish to add to their HMA skill set. Week one focuses on MRE and CL capabilities and the skills required to deliver MRE effectively. Week two will focus on training students to be ‘train the trainers’. There are no pre-course requirements to attend week one. However, week two is designed for those with MRE/CL experience wanting to gain a Train the Trainer certification. The IMAS MRE/CL course is a fundamental requirement for those wishing to work in ‘community’ or ‘project’ support roles within mine action programs.
Is this course recognized Globally?
Our courses are delivered to the exacting International Mine Action Standards (IMAS). To ensure the quality of training and IMAS compliance, our courses are externally validated by the UK-based “Open College Network” (OCN) – Credit4Learning NGO. This gives our training and your certification the credibility and recognition it deserves.
Included in the syllabus
- Introduction to HMA: Those agencies and organisations involved in MA from commercial to NGO, including the five pillars of MA and their core activities.
- HMA Standards: Introduction into standards, including NMA Technical Standards & Guidelines (TSG’s) & Organisations Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), be able to identify what HMA activities are taking place in their theatre of operation and who are the main actors and what they are doing.
- Roles and Responsibilities of MRE/CL: Understand the MRE/CL approach means and its components throughout a general mine action program. Understand the information to be delivered and the liaison required to disseminate information to the identified actors and agencies affected by ERW. MRE & CL best practices. MRE goals & activities. The roles of the MRE and links with other MA activities. Target groups and implementation strategies.
- Explosive Remnants of War: Recognition of ERW by groups, subgroups, hazards and functioning actions, firing mechanisms and fusing. Able to explain the impact of mine and UXO contamination on individuals, communities and the region as a whole.
- Mine Signs and ERW Indicators: Explain the most common warning signs and common indicators for the presence of ERW and the difference between official marking and local marking. Understanding threat indicators and ground sign.
- Identifying Risk and Explaining the Dangers Through Appropriate Media: Identifying the ERW risk and the dangers they pose to each demographic group. Selecting the most appropriate media in which to deliver the messages to encourage behavioural change.
- Coping Strategies: The ability to identify the best coping strategies available to the target groups to deal with the impact of ERW upon their environment and the different type of risk-taking behaviour, such as uninformed, unaware, reckless, intentional or misinformed.
- Interview Technique/Reconnaissance Visits: Able to directly gather mine/ERW information from communities using mapping, GPS, IMSMA, group meetings and individual interviews to a standard that will enable technical teams to further investigate the situation. Conduct Non-technical survey for a location and mark off suspect dangerous areas (SHA) and compile post-visit reports.
- Planning MRE Media Strategies: Through the selection of the most effective and appropriate media, coordinate and plan for the delivery of a message to effect behavioural change, such as; radio messages, playlets, posters, flyers, games, discussion groups, etc.
- Non-Technical Survey: Non-Technical Survey (NTS) conduct, roles and capabilities, utilising IMSMA impact survey, dangerous area and technical reporting. Conduct of practical exercises where your skills will be assessed in planning, conduct, documentation of findings and recommendations made. NTS will include survey planning, including the use of drone technologies on practical exercises.
- Teaching Skills and Delivery of Training Materials: Delivery of MRE theory and practical lessons in the training of MRE staff. Compiling material and developing teaching strategies and techniques for the dissemination of MRE messages. Through applying key learning points from training to different situations and demonstrate an understanding of the concepts and practices that have been presented.