The International Security Sector Advisory Team (ISSAT) was officially created within DCAF – the Centre for Security Sector Governance on 8 February 2008. It is one of DCAF’s four departments and forms part of the multi-dimensional approach that DCAF has supporting Security Sector Governance. ISSAT was set up in recognition of the need to increase the capacity of the international community to support Security Sector Governance/Reform (SSG/R) and Security & Justice (S&J) processes, to enhance the effectiveness and quality of SSG/R activities, and to facilitate the coordination and coherence of the international community’s support for nationally driven SSR procedures. ISSAT works through providing support principally to its bilateral and multilateral Governing Board Members.
ISSAT’s goal is to reinforce and improve the way in which its Governing Board Members (GBMs) individually and collectively support S&J development. Given the diversity of our GBMs’ needs, we achieve our operational goal through tailored individual assistance, as well as facilitating better coordinated approaches between and within GBMs through maximising our convening power and partnerships across our GBMs. This is provided across a range of advisory, professional development and training, and knowledge and outreach services.
ISSAT has six objectives, each of which have several sub-objectives. These are:
Enable better decision-making around S&J programming
- Better prepare GBM decision-making through scoping-studies, assessments and mappings
- Better enable GBM adjustments in decision-making through monitoring and evaluation and lessons identification
- Better incorporate risk assessment and mitigation in GBM decision-making
Improve GBM Coordination
- Improve GBM approaches to cross-institutional or organisational support for S&J
- Improve the extent to which GBMs cooperate on ISSAT mandates
Enhance GBMs’ strategic approaches
- Strengthen the development of GBMs’ strategic approaches for supporting S&J
- Enable the implementation of GBMs’ strategic approaches for supporting S&J
Build the business case for supporting S&J
- Develop a set of key S&J indicators to be integrated and monitored in S&J support
- Produce clear narratives for GBMs to articulate the added value of supporting S&J
Enhance GBMs’ capacities to deploy strategic S&J advisors
- Deliver high-quality training for GBMs
- Strengthen GBM systems to deploy strategic advisors
Provide a toolbox of approaches and examples of how to support S&J
- Enable GBMs to integrate elements dealing with the prevention of violent conflict into their S&J programming
- Strengthen GBM’s access to examples on what has worked