Page 8 - Coespu 2018-3

advance its ability to
keep pace with modern
conflict situations. A
special UN Expert Panel
on Technology,
established in 2014,
resulted in the adoption
of a joint,
comprehensive
innovation strategy by
the Departments of
Peacekeeping
Operations and Field
Support.
Key goals of this effort
include: safety and
security measures; the
enhancement of the
situational awareness, including mobile event reporting and incident tracking; and improved UN
site perimeter surveillance. Several UN peace operations, including in Mali, the Democratic
Republic of Congo, South Sudan are already employing information-gathering drones, aerostat
images, life high-resolution video feeds, integrated camp protection platforms and other means.
These activities also involve the better management of convoy movement, vehicle-mounted and
UAV/GAV sensors as well as rapid police, military and civilian response and tactics.
Furthermore, a considerable attention is being paid to high-tech medical facilities and services,
such as the helicopter evacuation squadron provided by Canada in Mali. Simultaneously, DPKO
and DFS are investing considerable efforts to: improve connectivity across wider areas of
operation, especially in remote locations; enhance access to bandwidth; and generally improve
strategic communications support.
As always, reliable communication
links are the lifeline of
peacekeeping. Bearing this in
mind, a special Signals Unit
Training was established at the UN
Logistics Base in Entebbe Uganda,
which is also pioneering special
instruction courses for female
peacekeepers. The UN is also
paying considerable attention to
enhanced situational awareness,
which includes the creation of
corporate web-based incident
tracking, data visualization and
analysis tools. Concurrently, the
UN is working with partners to
identify and develop an open source GIS platform together with other solutions and technical

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