Malaysia: ‘Train-the-trainer’ course advances capacities to deliver local CBRN training, perform substance sampling

Incidents or attacks involving chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) agents can happen at any time and have devastating consequences. Whether natural, accidental or deliberate in origin, it is essential that countries and regions strengthen their technical and operational capabilities to respond to a real-life CBRN emergency. This includes building a team of trainers who can develop, prepare, organize and carry out of CBRN Training, including simulation exercises, to test and build up CBRN response capacities.

Malaysia enhances skills to deliver CBRN trainings

The EU CBRN Centres of Excellence has supported a ‘train-the-trainer’ course in Malaysia aimed at enhancing the country’s capacities to prepare and implement CBRN exercises and training. Malaysian experts from the police, military, and Department of Chemistry (Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation) joined the four-day session (6-10 November).

The ‘train-the-trainer’ course also focused on advancing the experts’ skills to perform specialised sampling procedures applicable to CBRN incidents.

The first segment of a program called ‘CBRN Train the Trainers Course’, this training series will serve to increase the quality and quantity of CBRN training activities in Malaysia, increasing the country’s multiagency capabilities to respond to CBRN incidents and attacks.

Strengthening CBRN risk mitigation in Southeast Asia

The European Union supported the delivery of the ‘CBRN Train the Trainers Course’ in Malaysia within the framework of the EU CBRN CoE Project 62. This project provides on-site technical assistance to the Regional Secretariat that coordinates the implementation of the EU CBRN CoE Initiative in the Southeast Asia region.

The ‘CBRN Train the Trainers Course’ is implemented by the International Security and Emergency Management Institute (ISEMI), supported by Business and Strategies Europe (B&S Europe), in cooperation with Malaysian’s CBRN local experts.

All ten-partner countries cooperating within the EU CBRN CoE Regional Secretariat in Southeast Asia participate in the EU CBRN CoE Project 62, namely: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia. All are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).