197 cadets from three state police agencies in training at AEPTM: Large number of police officers still missing

(Patria) - The Agency for Education and Professional Training of Personnel (AEPTM) based in Mostar has a maximum capacity of 250 cadets. As of today, they have 197 cadets in training from three state police agencies.

As the Agency stated for Patria, there are currently 117 cadets of the Border Police of BiH undergoing basic police training at Level I (rank "police officer"), 50 cadets of the Directorate for Coordination of Police Bodies (rank "police officer"), and 30 cadets of SIPA (ranks "police officer" and "junior inspector").

Although there have been attempts to increase the capacity of this Agency, and such an initiative was rejected by the House of Peoples of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly with the explanation that the BiH Council of Ministers should deal with it, the Agency also has a problem with the number of employees, as out of 65 systematized positions, 46 are filled.

"Since moving to the newly built complex of facilities, the Agency for Education and Professional Training of Personnel can accommodate 250 cadets and police officers for basic, professional and specialist programs," they state in their response.

The duration of training differs for these three state police agencies: the basic police training for SIPA cadets at Level I (rank "police officer") lasts eight months, while the curriculum for basic training of SIPA cadets at Level II (rank "junior inspector") is conducted over a period of seven months.

The basic police training for BiH Border Police cadets at Level I (rank "police officer") lasts eight months, while the curriculum for basic training of BiH Border Police cadets at Level II (rank "junior inspector") is conducted over a period of six months. The curricula for basic training of BiH Border Police cadets are aligned with the FRONTEX Common Core Curriculum for basic training of the EU border and coast guard (Common Core Curriculum 2022).

The basic police training for DKPT cadets at Level I (rank "police officer") lasts 11 months, while the curriculum for basic training of DKPT cadets at Level II (rank "junior inspector") is conducted over a period of 4 months.

Given that all state police agencies lack police officers, and that in this context an increase in the Agency's capacity was initiated, the greatest responsibility lies with the heads of the police agencies, but also with the BiH Council of Ministers, which approves the employment plan.

"Faster replacement of police officers in the three state police agencies depends on timely planning within the police agencies themselves. This is followed by obtaining approval for new recruitments from the BiH Council of Ministers, after which tender procedures are conducted, which are under the direct authority of the police agencies. Only after that do cadets come to our agency for one of the training programs. Since our agency moved to the new complex in 2020, we have not had a situation where, due to full accommodation capacity, cadets from any of the mentioned police agencies had to wait for admission to basic training. Certainly, increasing the accommodation and staffing capacities of the Agency would enable the admission of a larger number of cadets from the three state agencies.

It should be emphasized that our agency fulfills all planned activities, although its staffing capacities are insufficient. Namely, the current staffing level (46 employees out of 65 systematized positions) is optimally sufficient for conducting basic training for approximately 150 cadets. In situations where the number of cadets is larger, the Agency organizes the smooth conduct of teaching processes by engaging external associates, mainly university professors and experts in certain areas of police work, in accordance with the curricula," state from AEPTM.

Just this year, the three state police agencies will lose a significant number of police officers due to retirement, and the pace of cadet admission does not match that number, nor has the Law on Police Officers of BiH been amended to extend the service of some police officers. However, the amendments to the law themselves have opened numerous questions about who will actually benefit from the changes, whether they favor individuals with ranks, and whether it is the head who decides who can stay and who cannot.