COM EUFOR, Major General Johann Luif, visited the bridge construction project in the village of Luzani near Derventa on 24 Mar 15. A EUFOR team of engineering specialists, 7 from Austria and 3 from Slovenia, are conducting a Bridge Building Course for 14 BiH Armed Forces engineers from Derventa as part of the EUFOR Capacity, Building and Training programme. Utilising the skills and techniques taught during the course a road bridge in Luncani, near Derventa, is being repaired.
What is trained during this Bridge Building Course?
The Bridge Building course is 3 weeks long, the first week consists of the soldiers being taught the theory of how to construct a bridge and also how to use the equipment needed such as chainsaws and welding tools, this takes place in the barracks at Derventa, where the AFBiH Engineering Battalion are based.
During the second and third weeks these skills are developed by constructing a bridge in the local area. After explaining what had been taught on the course Capt Markus Jansche (Austria) said " the AFBiH engineers are well-motivated and keen to learn. Capt Alojz Zupancic (Slovenia), added "this is the second course that has taken place, in the future the AFBiH engineers will be able to assist the population by repairing bridges around BiH that have been damaged by the recent floods"
A part of the EU Flood Recovery Programme
The materials for the project in Lucani are being funded by the EU Floods Recovery Programme and managed by the United Nations Development Programme. The EU's Flood Recovery Programme was launched in August 2014, and it is worth 43.52 M EURO (IPA 42,24 M EURO and UNDP 1,28 M EURO). The aim of the Programme is to support recovery of the affected areas after the May 2014 floods through addressing critical gaps identified by the Recovery Needs Assessment, primarily in the fields of housing, public services, infrastructure, and livelihoods (support for SMEs and agriculture).
