More than 50 senior enlisted leaders from the U.S. and 30 African countries convened in Lilongwe, Malawi BTW Sept. 9-13 for the 6th annual Africa Senior Enlisted Leaders Conference. The recently held meting was its’ second edition on the continent.
Addressing participants at the event, Gen. Dr. Paul V. Phiri, The Commander, Malawi Defence Force said “the conference, marks a historic milestone not only for the Malawi Defence Force and Malawi, but also all the esteemed senior enlisted leaders from across our great continent.”
The gathering was hosted by the Malawi Defence Forces and U.S. Africa Command. The conference provided a forum for senior noncommissioned officers to share best practices, discuss challenges, and strengthen partnerships.
Through briefings and breakout sessions, senior NCOs heard how other militaries are developing their NCO corps, and have the opportunity to work together on ways they might improve current programs.
“We are deeply honored that you have chosen our nation—the Warm Heart of Africa, to be the canvas upon which this event unfolds,” Phiri said.
Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Troy E. Black, also attended the conference and stressed the importance of developing noncommissioned officers.
“The more we educate our enlisted force,” Black said, “the better we can unencumber the officer force to get after the strategic missions.”
Participating countries heard from U.S., NATO and partners about new developments in service NCO academies, and progress made in strengthening programs in each others’ countries. Breakout sessions gave participants more in-depth discussions on the topics brought up in plenary.
In an effort to support countries on its southern flank, NATO established agreements with Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia, and is looking to support African countries in developing their NCO corps as well.
Sgt. Maj. Ludek Kolesa, NATO Defence Education Enhancement Programme Non-Commissioned Officer Coordinator, shared information during the conference about how the program can help support African partner nations’ efforts in developing their NCO corps.
The DEEP program established an NCO working group to help develop professional military education programs at partners’ requests. The program also helps identify areas that specifically need development and modernization to support their country’s priorities. NATO also offered NCO Corps Professional Development as a vector for transformation of respective countries’ military organizations in order to emphasize the importance of having a professional NCO Corps.
Through the theme, “The Competent, Capable and Credible NCO,” this year’s senior enlisted conference provided the opportunity to bring the leaders of partner militaries together to expand and deepen relationships, support partner senior NCOs in developing programs to build leadership, proficiency and resiliency among their NCO corps.
“Each of us here represents our nation’s Profession of Arms,” Sgt. Maj. Michael Woods, Command Senior Enlisted Leader, U.S. Africa Command said.
“This conference is about bringing Senior Non-Commissioned Officers together to discuss our shared interests and gain unique insight from each other.
Previous years’ edition was held in Lusaka, Zambia.
