CHIEF of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force, Brigadier Patrick West on Wednesday declared open the Senior Command and Staff Course (SCSC) #15. He called on the participating officers to understand their role as the Force continues its journey of transforming for Total National Defence.

The SCSC is a capstone course which prepares senior officers of the Force for command and senior staff appointments, GDF said in a release. The thirteen-week course covers several areas including minor staff duties, communication skills, tactics in open and close country warfare, internal security operations, military law, military history, administration and logistics.

Successful completion of the SCSC is one of the requirements for an officer to be elevated to the Senior Officer Corps. Brigadier West in his address to the officers, emphasised that in order for them to be successful on the course, they must understand the contemporary military environment. He explained that the current operating environment is changing and necessitates a position of implementing a system for Total National Defence.

“[Total National Defence] is a concept based on three pillars- Technology, Intelligence and Economy. It will be accomplished through different types of operations which are military operations, civil defence operations and psychological operations… Our doctrine must therefore be shaped to demonstrate the concept of fighting in multi domains as existing threats and other threats emerge on land, in the air, at sea, in space and in cyberspace,” he explained.

Quoting from President and Commander in Chief, President David Granger, Brigadier West said, “The Defence Force, in pursuance of its defence doctrine is being strengthened as a well-organized, well commanded, well trained and well-equipped Defence Force with the core capabilities to keep our citizens safe and secure.

The Force, in order to fulfil its mission must be agile, flexible and fully integrated. It requires the support of the rest of the country, if it is to realise the doctrine of total national defence.”

Further, the Chief of Staff told the officers that it was incumbent for them to be conversant with technology and technological changes. He urged the officers to conceptualise their role in the transformative process, and how they could accelerate and contribute to its effectiveness. The course is currently in its fourth week of training.