Armoury Rehabilitation and Construction in Burkina Faso
As part of the 'Regional assistance to Arms Management and Destruction in Sahel-West Africa,' MAG conducted technical risk assessments of 23 weapons storage facilities in Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso and together with the national authorities (Police, Gendarmerie, Military) agreed on priority interventions. Initial interventions included the installation of a containerized armoury at a Police unit, the rehabilitation of weapons storage facilities of Military units, and the construction of an armoury at the Gendarmerie HQ. Preliminary phases including the review of designs, the launch of tenders and selection of local contractors started in August.
The 'Arms Management and Destruction Programme for Sahel-West Africa' is a regional project co-funded by the US Department of State's Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement and the German Federal Foreign Office. MAG is working with states in the Sahel and West Africa to identify areas for assistance and improve management of nationally held weapons and ammunition, with the aim of reducing the risk of diversion of items to the illicit market as well as the risk of unplanned explosions in munitions depots. The project aims to contribute to security in the region by equipping states in the Sahel and West Africa with the infrastructure and training to tackle the challenge of conventional arms proliferation in the long term.
Djadranka Gillesen, MAG Regional Representative
M (UK): +44 7818 410483
M (Senegal): +221 77 205 8131
E: djadranka.gillesen@maginternational.org