VZCZCXRO1262
RR RUEHGI RUEHTRO
DE RUEHNJ #0057/01 0551735
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 241735Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY NDJAMENA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6734
INFO RUEHGI/AMEMBASSY BANGUI 1553
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 0526
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1797
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 2356
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI 0543

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NDJAMENA 000057 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PREF UN CT CD
SUBJECT: MINURCAT SOLICITS FUNDING FOR CONTINUED CHADIAN 
POLICE TRAINING AND RULE OF LAW ACTIVITIES IN EASTERN CHAD 
 
------- 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  MINURCAT officials, UN Police (UNPOL) 
Chief Major General Chaumont and SRSG Assistant Gerard 
Gerrold, met with the DCM February 24 to discuss continued 
funding for MINURCAT activities in eastern Chad targeting 
police capacity-building and improvements in the Rule of Law 
sector.  Chaumont and Gerrold said these activities would 
continue to be financed through a Trust Fund begun in 2008 to 
support training for a special police/gendarme force (the 
DIS) deployed in and around refugee and IDP camps.  According 
to MINURCAT calculations, the Trust Fund requires 
replenishing in order to cover the projected cost of 
supporting the DIS through 2009 and 2010.  In addition, as 
part of its mandate, MINURCAT proposes to implement 
complementary activities in the corrections and justice 
sectors which will require increased funding.  Gerrold told 
the DCM that the SRSG will either launch a public appeal for 
additional Trust Fund financing or make a more discreet 
request to previous donors for continued support.  In 
preliminary discussions with the SRSG the European Union 
Delegation pledged between seven and eight million euros to 
the Trust Fund and said it would prefer that MINURCAT pursue 
the second, more discreet option, in soliciting further 
donations.  The DCM requested and received detailed 
information on the proposed 2009-2010 budget and promised to 
convey MINURCAT's appeal to Washington.  The DCM also noted 
concerns shared by other donors regarding past difficulties 
in properly vetting Chadian participants for police and 
military training programs.  Chaumont explained UNPOL's 
rigorous process for screening DIS candidates.  All agreed 
that international support for the DIS and other Rule of Law 
programs cannot continue indefinitely and that the GoC should 
be encouraged to take ownership of these programs.  End 
Summary 
 
¶2. (SBU)  MINURCAT officials, UNPOL Chief Major General 
Chaumont and SRSG Assistant Gerard Gerrold, met with the DCM 
February 24 to discuss continued funding for MINURCAT 
activities in eastern Chad targeting police capacity-building 
and improvements in the Rule of Law sector.  Chaumont began 
the discussion by reporting on the successful completion of 
UNPOL's mission in training and deploying 850 DIS police 
officers to eastern Chad.  The final training session ended 
February 7 and all officers have now been deployed to their 
assigned positions in one of 6 police stations or 12 police 
posts located in and around refugee camps and IDP sites. 
UNPOL officers will continue to monitor performance and 
provide daily support to DIS detachments in the field and 
will do a comprehensive formal evaluation in the next few 
months.  Chaumont noted the need for this type of evaluation 
before considering any expansion of the training program 
and/or increase in the number of DIS officers.  The DCM asked 
whether they shared concerns expressed by the French that in 
the past, properly vetting Chadian candidates for various 
training programs had been difficult and as a result some 
programs had inadvertently included human rights offenders 
and criminals.  Chaumont said all DIS candidates had been 
thoroughly identified and vetted through UN and partner human 
rights organizations prior to inclusion in the program. 
 
¶3. (SBU) SRSG Assistant Gerrold provided details on the Trust 
Fund budget and explained the need for additional funding to 
cover projected costs in 2009 and 2010.  The Trust Fund began 
in 2008 with an initial sum of $21 million to support DIS 
training and other costs associated with their deployment. 
Approximately nine million dollars was dispensed from this 
original amount in 2008.  According to MINURCAT, the 
remaining $16 million in the Trust Fund will not be 
sufficient to cover DIS costs through the end of 2009.  Total 
support for DIS in the field, which includes incentive pay, 
costs between $500- $600,000 per month.  Including the cost 
of lodging construction for the detachments, Gerrold 
estimated they would need an additional three million dollars 
in 2009.  The projected cost of supporting the DIS in 2010 is 
$17 million for a total of $20 million over the next two 
years. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Gerrold described MINURCAT's plan to implement 
complementary programs in the Rule of Law sector which will 
also require funding through the Trust Fund.  As he noted, 
improved police performance must be accompanied by 
construction and rehabilitation of prisons and increased 
capacity in the justice system in order to have a measurable 
impact on security in the region.  MINURCAT Rule of Law 
 
NDJAMENA 00000057  002 OF 002 
 
 
programs in 2009 and 2010 will cost an estimated $10 million 
including six million dollars for the correctional system and 
four million dollars for the justice sector.  In total, the 
SRSG is likely to appeal for $30 - $31 million in donations 
to the Trust Fund over the next two years. 
 
¶5. (SBU) The SRSG will either launch a public appeal for 
Trust Fund financing or make a discreet, more targeted, 
request to prior donors for continued support.  In their 
discussions with the SRSG on this topic, the EU Delegation 
said they would prefer that MINURCAT pursue the second option 
in soliciting donations.  Gerrold described this as 
potentially a "Friends of Chad" donor group effort.  In 
response to the DCM's request for more details, he said they 
would request at least the equivalent of previously donated 
amounts from each past donor.  (This list includes: Japan, 
Norway, Ireland, Luxembourg, the EU, the Netherlands, and 
Belgium in addition to the U.S., all of whom are giving or 
are expected to give in the two to three million dollar 
range.)  Gerrold reported that the EU Delegation had already 
pledged between seven and eight million euros in preliminary 
discussions with the SRSG.  The DCM acknowledged the merit of 
MINURCAT's programs and promised to convey its request to 
Washington.  All agreed that international support for the 
DIS and other Rule of Law programs cannot continue 
indefinitely and that the GoC should be encouraged to take 
ownership of these programs if they are to become 
sustainable. 
 
NIGRO