The first international seminar of the CT Public Spaces project, held in Dakar, brought together specialists in the fight against terrorism from Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, Spain, the European Union and the United Nations.

A two-day event focused the debate on the analysis and exchange of experiences on current global and regional terrorist threats, and on how to respond to them in the public spaces of the partner countries.

This international seminar brought together top-level actors in the fight against terrorism, who analysed the most recent anti-terrorist techniques, as well as their implementation in accordance with the particularities of each country. The initiative aimed at reinforcing the training and exchange work carried out so far in Spain, Ghana, Kenya and Senegal by the CT Public Spaces project.

The working sessions, moderated by the general coordinator of the Technical Cooperation Office of AECID in Senegal, Javier Vega Barral, were followed by a number of authorities of the entities in charge of the fight against terrorism in the partner countries, such as the Cadre d'Intervention et deCoordination interministériel des Opérations de lutte anti-terrorisme (CICO-LAT), the Gendarmerie Nationale and Police Nationale of Senegal, the National Counter Terrorism Fusion Center (NCTFC) of Ghana and the National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) of Kenya.

Because the CT Public Spaces project is implemented by the Spanish Guardia Civil and managed by FIIAPP, the event was also attended by the Director of the Centro de Inteligencia contra el Terrorismo y Crimen Organizado (CITCO) of Spain, as well as the Colonel Head of the Rural Action Unit (UAR) of Guardia Civil. Senegal also participated with the presence of private security representatives. At the international level, the director of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) in Madrid was present, and the European Commission participated through a video on security in the design of its Joint Research Centre (JRC).

Also, before the official closure, the "Guides for anti-terrorist protection in public spaces" were delivered. These guides, prepared by Guardia Civil in the framework of the CT Public Spaces project, have meant the adaptation of its own doctrine in the protection of public spaces to the partner country.

The EU-funded CT Public Spaces project has contributed since its inception to prevent and reduce terrorist attacks and their effects on public spaces through different actions,  including the training carried out by the Spanish Guardia Civil and  the EU High Risk Security Network (EU-HRSN) in three African partner countries: Ghana, Kenya and Senegal.

These trainings and their recent testing through Table Top and LIVEX exercises in Senegal, Kenya and in the coming days in Ghana, have certainly improved the public spaces protection capacity of partner security forces.