Royal Marines spent a fortnight in Africa teaching local law enforcers how to keep their waters secure.
A group of commandos from 1 Assault Group in Plymouth swapped Devon for South Africa and Tanzania as they shared their expertise in boat work to provide maritime security training.
In Cape Town, the team linked up with the local Law Enforcement Team to move from basic drills all the way up to using several boats to interdict criminals on the water by night and day.
They then flew 2,200 miles to Dar es Salaam, another of Africa’s great port cities, to deliver similar training to the Tanzanian Peoples’ Defence Force – whose waterborne police craft include some old British fast boats.
“Conducting training in Tanzania was more challenging as there was a language barrier but we soon adapted using various methods of training and the students came on leaps and bounds,” said Marine Tim Lombard.
The five days of training were partially interrupted by a surprise visit from Secretary of State for International Development Penny Mordaunt who was in Tanzania seeing how UK aid is helping the local populace.
The marines gave the MP and accompanying dignitaries a tour of the huge harbour – which Britain has heavily invested in – then, with all but one of the VIPs safely deposited back on dry land, allowed the minister– a former naval reservist – to take the helm for a short spin.
As in Cape Town, the week’s instruction in Dar es Salaam built up to a final exercise with the students demonstrating what they learned by intercepting and boarding a suspicious vessel – played by a Tanzanian warship.
In both ports, the hosts introduced the commandos to local customs and sights – from a ‘braai’ in Cape Town (similar to a barbecue “only better”) to visits to Table Mountain and Robben Island) to the white sandy, palm-tree-lined beaches of Dar es Salaam which were, says Tim, “nothing short of paradise.”
The fortnight in Africa is the latest Short-Term Training Team provided by the Royal Marines to military and police units around the globe.
