Pretoria - The technical team from the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces has arrived in South Africa to help the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to service and maintain its military vehicles and build internal technical capacity.
The technicians have already started working in various centres of the SANDF across the country.
The arrival of the team follows a technical agreement that was signed between the two armed forces under an existing Military to Military Agreement, the Department of Defence said on Monday.
“This agreement is set to create an internal pool of technical skills in the SANDF, which will enable the Defence Force to properly service and maintain its vehicles. Since the arrival of the Cuban mechanics, there has been a markedly increased manner in the servicing of vehicles,” spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini said.
SANDF has had numerous problems in the maintenance of vehicles at a very high cost with little benefit, according to Dlamini.
Through this agreement, Dlamini said the SANDF will be able to develop its own internal capacity and save on costs while bringing up its vehicle serviceability.
“More importantly, the SANDF will be able to build internal capacity to ensure the serviceability of its vehicles in operational areas where it has been facing serious challenges, which had a negative impact on the reimbursement from the United Nations.” - SAnews.gov.za
