| Summary: | The introduction of a multidimensional approach towards peace missions in<br />complex emergencies emphasises the importance of coordination between the military<br />and the humanitarian components at all levels of interaction. Cooperation and<br />coordination between the military and humanitarian components are critical to<br />achieve a common goal to alleviate suffering and to save lives. The challenge is how<br />to develop, enhance and sustain an effective working relationship to overcome the<br />conflicting views on coordination from the military and humanitarian perspectives.<br />Humanitarians fear the loss of independence and neutrality when associated with the<br />military when the military component becomes directly involved in humanitarian<br />action. During selection, the military needs to identify members who firstly conform<br />to the generic psychological peacekeeping profile and secondly portray the skills,<br />knowledge and abilities to perform the coordination function between the military and<br />the humanitarian component. The challenge remains to select competent military<br />members in the absence of a psychological profile for the coordination function. This<br />article paves the way for research on the psychological profile for a civil military<br />coordination officer (CIMIC officer), highlighting the importance of coordination<br />through analysing the environment, challenges and perspectives in defining the roles<br />and functions of CIMIC officers in complex emergencies.
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