By Chief of Field Technology Section, UNFICYP, David Wilkins

​​​​​​​Never has the importance of technology been more critical than it is now, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

UNFICYP’s Field Technology Section (FTS) having been working overtime to ensure the mission’s work in Cyprus continues uninterrupted during these challenging times. “We had to adapt swiftly as most of our civilian staff and some military and UNPOL are now telecommuting from home or alternate locations away from the office”

 “In UN peace operations I have come to expect the unexpected.” said David Wilkins, Chief of Field Technology, “ Thankfully we have robust contingency plans in place and therefore as the COVID-19 outbreak started to spread and as restrictions on movement started to be enforced across the island, we were able to respond quickly and fully leverage Cloud based IT systems (Office365) to ensure our peacekeepers could continue their mandated tasks inside the buffer zone and more broadly throughout the whole mission area. I’m proud of the way our personnel have stepped up to meet the challenges we are facing and have adapted almost seamlessly to the new mobile office environment and are able to continue their daily work virtually uninterrupted.”

 “We have also stepped up measures to prevent potential cyber security threats and continue monitoring our IT and telecommunications systems remotely with virtually no person to person contact needed. Our business continuity plans are also being kept closely under review as the situation evolves.”

 End.