European Border and Coast Guard Academy

The EBCG Academy provides a coherent, integrated, and centralised education as well as a training system that operates in line with the Frontex Capability Development Plan. The EBCG Academy contributes to the preparedness of the Standing Corps and fosters the development of a common European border and coast guard culture as a key element of European integrated border management. It also develops training cooperation networks and implements training grants.

The training activities contribute to the fulfilment of the Agency’s mission and the achievement of its strategic objectives established for our common vision, ‘The European Area of Freedom, Security and Justice.’

Frontex supports EU Member States in their efforts to achieve an efficient, high, and uniform level of border control and develop capacities to tackle challenges associated with migration flows.

The Agency contributes to the fight against serious cross-border crime and terrorism at Europe’s external borders. Its mission in the field of training is to provide border and coast guards with quality learning to ensure harmonised operational competences for integrated border management. In all its activities a common European approach is emphasised and focused on full compliance with fundamental rights and the highest standards. Frontex activities are carried out based on operational needs and in the specific context of each given stakeholder.

The AULA system is used to manage EBCG Academy training programmes and support tasks related to processes linked with training event organisation and participation, along with the implementation of quality assurance policies and procedures in course design, development, and delivery. The system includes Moodle, a learning management system for hosting courses and informal learning pathways.

The Academy also uses a system called CAPTA (Complex Analysis Platform for Training and Administration) to monitor learning activity, produce activity reports and forecasts, simulate key learning outcomes, and analyse learning outcomes related to the academic performance of learners and their level of involvement in the learning process.

The EBCG Academy is a member-observer of the European Consortium for Accreditation in higher education (ECA), an association of recognised accreditation and quality assurance agencies in Europe, which strives for continuous progress in the area of accreditation and external quality assurance, facilitates mutual recognition of qualifications, promotes the internationalisation of higher education, and creates transparency in quality assurance through  a strong alliance with both members and observers.

The membership provides opportunities for networking, mutual learning, and exchange of best practices, and confirms the high quality of the training provided by the Academy and its alignment with European standards of training and education. 

The EBCG Academy also takes part in conferences and training events organised by the European Consortium for Accreditation in higher education (ECA) and the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA).

According to the European Border and Coast Guard Regulation, Frontex may organise training activities in cooperation with EU Member States and third countries on their territory. Frontex supports EU Member States in ensuring an efficient, uniform, and high level of border and coast guarding, and develops capacities to tackle problems at the EU’s external borders.

The Partnership Academies (PA) network is a network of EU national border and coast guard educational institutions mandated to deliver training for border and coast guards. Since its inception in 2005 the PA network has grown steadily and the collaboration between Frontex and the PAs has proved to be a success. It is in the common interest of Frontex and EU Member States to maintain and further develop the PA network to continuously improve cooperation in European border and coast guard education and training and to allow Frontex to provide required training support.

To ensure an international dimension, Frontex and the PAs cooperate with other EU agencies and international bodies, such as CEPOL, the European Coast Guard Function Forum, AEPC, OSCE, etc.

Currently the EBCG Academy employs 58 staff members and has access to 1,290 certified trainers of 29 different nationalities. Training is organised and delivered in collaboration with National Training Coordinators and a network of 42 Partnership Academies.

Academic instructors are drawn from a pool of trainers maintained for all Frontex training activities. The pool of trainers is created via nominations of EU Member State and Schengen Area Country National Training Coordinators.

Operational experts from EU Member States and Schengen Area Countries are nominated and selected using the same method as trainers. In addition, Frontex draws on the organisational expertise of individuals with an EU-wide perspective in their operational expertise. Finally, as an EU Agency, Frontex has direct access to relevant EU actors to support its training programme delivery as guest speakers, particularly in the area of EU border security strategy. 

Frontex supports the mobility of teaching staff for all its training activities through open nomination processes and by covering all related costs to support the exchange of best practices and increased cooperation, interoperability, and harmonisation in border and coast guard training.