ST JAMES, Jamaica (JIS) — The Caribbean Special Tactics Centre (CSTC) was officially opened at the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) Moneague Training Camp, in St Ann, on Monday.

The centre, which was established by the JDF in collaboration with the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), was funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) Capacity Building Programme. It is geared at producing graduates proficient in advanced military tactics and techniques.

In his address, Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Rocky Meade, said the opening of the CSTC marks a milestone for Jamaica and the wider Caribbean, as it will be the only Centre of Excellence in the region providing specialised training in military tactics and techniques.

He said the facility is testament to Jamaica’s commitment to the consistent delivery of the highest level of training and operational international best practices to support capacity building, through training.

The major general said the CSTC is the seventh addition to the JDF’s Centres of Excellence and complements the military’s Staff School, Maritime Training School, the Flying School, the Technical Training Institute, the Military Training Wing and the Directorate of Training and Doctrine, all of which have been delivering a “wide array of skills training.”

“The centre will deliver advanced training and certification and facilitate knowledge exchange in security and defence proficiency to militaries and police forces with similar interests. The primary focus of CSTC will be on special tactics and operational readiness. Readiness measures the ability of a military to accomplish its assigned missions,” the major general explained.

“This is part of a vision that we have for the region – to deliver training to small forces across the world. I have had dialogue with my fellow military heads in the region with a view to harnessing our different skills sets, our different expertise, to create schools within our countries and by our forces that will complement each other and offer a wide range of military training to small forces around the world,” he added.

Major General Meade noted that Jamaica and Canada have, for decades, promoted and maintained a sustainable economic partnership, and similarly the JDF and the CAF have maintained a mutually beneficial capacity-building relationship, which include strategic military exercises, training, exchanges and disaster relief assistance.

“The establishment of this school within the Centres of Excellence is yet another achievement on this long list of projects and exchanges that our forces have engaged in over the years,” he said.

“The different initiatives and investments in the JDF reflect the strong pillars on which our forces continue to grow and promote enhanced security measures and standardised training in the Caribbean to the benefit of all forces in the region and beyond,” he added.