FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
INL Kabul celebrates first anniversary of Gibson Training Center (GTC)
Over the past year, INL planned and hosted 71 trainings, workshops, and graduation ceremonies at the Gibson Training Center (GTC) in Kabul in support of our counternarcotics, corrections, and justice programs. These events trained1517 Afghan professionals, including 280 women. The GTC hosts a variety of INL-funded trainings in partnership with the Corrections System Support Program (CSSP), the Ministry of Counternarcotics (MCN), and the Justice Sector Support Program (JSSP). Each GTC program offers opportunities for practitioners working to combat the narcotics trade and build capacity in the justice system to deepen their knowledge on a range of issues through training and networking opportunities.
In addition, the GTC platform enables senior Afghan officials to meet with their provincial ministry staff and discuss national issues. In most instances, these workshops and trainings were the first opportunity for the provincial staff to meet their senior leadership. The GTC has hosted eight nationwide conferences and eight Minister-level officials. In late May, the General Directorate for Prisons and Detention Centers (GDPDC), in coordination with CSSP, brought together the prison commanders from all 33 Afghan provincial prisons, as well as senior officials from GDPDC, the Ministry of Interior, the Supreme Court, the Attorney General’s Office, and the Ministry of Justice, for a four-day National Prison Commanders Conference. This conference enabled the prison commanders to engage with each other on solutions to the many challenges facing Afghanistan’s corrections system.
A key component of INL’s transition strategy is support for Afghan government-led trainings. In December, the Ministry of Counternarcotics hosted a capacity building training seminar for 160 civil servants from 34 provinces at the GTC. The training focused on the National Drug Control Strategy, the Drug Demand Reduction policy, the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the civil servants’ law, regulation of personal affairs for civil servants, monitoring and evaluation, procurement and finance issues, and intoxicants and drugs control law. GTC’s support enables the MCN to implement a capacity building seminar aimed at improving the knowledge and skills of their civil servants in the provinces, and increasing coordination between the provinces and the headquarters in Kabul.
In just one year, the GTC has grown into a fully functioning facility capable of providing a safe and comfortable learning environment for our Afghan partners. As the GTC looks towards Afghanistan’s transition, INL will continue to support training sponsored by our implementing partners and Embassy sections (including Public Affairs and the national Lincoln Learning Centers’ Conference) at our facilities. The opportunities provided at the GTC have served to build capacity and foster communication with our Afghan partners, empowering them to lead their country to a safe and stable future.
