Africa Commmand's Command Sergeant Major Meets the AFL

{CSM Ripka speaks to the graduates of Intantry Advanced individual Training at Camp Sandee S. Ware, near Careysburg, Liberia (May 23rd, 2008)}

U.S. AFRICOM’s Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Mark S. Ripka recently conducted a week-long visit to the nascent Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL). His well-received visit was deeply beneficial to the new AFL and its officers, NCOs and soldiers.

CSM Ripka spent a full week with the new Liberian army (May 21st-28th, 2008). Over the course of the week he toured all of the AFL’s active military installations including; the Barclay Training Center (BTC), Camp Sandee S. Ware and Edward Binyah Kesselly (EBK) Military Barracks.

At the BTC CSM Ripka met with the 36 officers, NCOs and junior enlisted enrolled in the Instructor Training Course. While speaking informally to the students he answered their questions about service as a career soldier, the role of the NCO and his own experiences over his long and very successful career. Later in the day he toured EBK Military Barracks, the new AFL’s operational base along the Roberts Highway between Monrovia and the international airport.

On Friday May 23rd, CSM Ripka was the guest speaker at the graduation ceremony for 506 AFL soldiers who completed Infantry Advanced Individual Training (AIT) at Camp Ware, near Careysburg, Liberia. His speech focused on core values of soldering; candor, courage, commitment, and competence. He also remarked about the interest and pride in the new army of Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf who for the first time addressed the rest of the AFL earlier in the morning at EBK Military Barracks (an event CSM Ripka also attended). After the graduation CSM Ripka traveled along with the troop convey that transported 481 of the AIT graduates from Camp Ware to their new home at EBK Military Barracks where he also observed reception and assignment operations conducted by AFL officers and NCOs.

On Monday May 26th, CSM Ripka held an officer professional development class at EBK for all of the new army’s officers. He shared his views on the relationship between officers and NCOs in a professional military. He also met with all the NCOs. In that discussion he spoke about the role of the NCO in a professional military. This interaction with Liberian commissioned officers and NCOs was a rare opportunity for soldiers in the new army to learn from an experienced NCO who has reached and succeeded at the highest levels in the military and to further develop themselves professionally.

Marines Visit Monrovia

{4th Marine Logistics Group members receive a briefing at JFK Hospital in Monrovia from Master Sergeant Carlton Lewis the Senior Medical Mentor with the AFL (on the right)}

The 4th Marine Logistics Group visited Liberia in late May (18-21) 2008 to determine how they might contribute to humanitarian assistance projects and investigate opportunities for military-to-military cooperation with the Armed Forces of Liberia. They visited several sites around Monrovia including the Port of Monrovia, humanitarian assistance projects which the Navy Seabees worked on from March to June 2008 as part of the Africa Partnership Station, JFK Hospital in town and EBK Military Barracks along the Roberts Highway outside Monrovia.

The 4th MLG will be the first unit to conduct military-to-military cooperation with the new Armed Forces of Liberia. Marines hope to conduct initial training with mobile training teams as early as August 2008 at EBK. This will mark a significant milestone in the development of this new army, as the AFL is now beginning to reach the stage where cooperation and training with foreign militaries is possible. The initial Marine efforts will be small land intended to test the waters so to speak. This is really about a proof of concept and an effort to get these sorts of activities going now rather than waiting until a couple of years from now when the full 2,000 soldier army is ready for operational status (likely to be in 2010). The initial cooperation will center around two activities at EBK; supply training and civil affairs.

Instructor Training Course Class 08-02

{LTC Wyatt addresses the ITC Class at the Barclay Training Center, May 7th, 2008}


Today I paid a visit to the instructor Training Course underway at the Barclay Training Center in Monrovia. This is our second class to train future Armed Forces of Liberia instructors. The first class (held at Camp Ware) was our proof of concept run with 18 students. It went so well that we were able to expand the course to accommodate 36 students this time around. Today’s instruction included a practical exercise where students each taught class for 10 minutes. Students then critique each other at the close of the session. We had junior enlisted soldiers, NCOs and officers in this class. The idea is to develop a cadre of qualified instructors across the ranks so the new army is well prepared when we finish our training program. This way they will be able to continue as a professional military force.

This course gives me a degree of personal satisfaction, as I had to work very hard and be persistent to see it come to fruition. It is one example of how persistence and innovation can pay off at no or low cost. That said it was not a solo effort. A great deal of effort and cooperation by DynCorp made it possible to put this together and achieve success. As I told the students today, teaching is one of the most important skills one can learn. It is critical to the success of any army to have good instructors to train soldiers.

Graduation Raises Troop Strength to 1,634 soldiers in the new AFL

{Elated new troops celebrate their graduation from basic training at the Barclay Training Center in Monrovia on April 25th, 2008}


Barclay Training Center, Monrovia, April 25th, 2008:

The size of the new Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) grew from 1,124 soldiers to 1,634 when 510 AFL recruits from Initial Entry Training Class 08-04 graduated from their basic training program at the Barclay Training Center in Monrovia. The new soldiers completed eight weeks of basic training at Camp Ware near Careysburg, which converted them from civilians into soldiers. This fourth class raised the total number of troops past the 82 percent completion point in the Security Sector Reform Program for National Defense. Just one final class of recruits remains. Perhaps the best part of any graduation ceremony is the participation of soldiers’ families. This ceremony was more heartwarming than the previous one, as hundreds of family members and friends remained on the parade field for nearly an hour after the ceremony --- taking in the historic event.

Military Police Graduation (April 10th, 2008)

{Lieutenant Colonel Wyatt and the graduating Military Police of MP Class 08-02 after the ceremony}

The second military police class for the new Armed Forces of Liberia graduated 18 new military police on April 10th, 2008 at Edward Binyah Kesselly Military Barracks along the Roberts Highway between Monrovia and the international airport. The guest speaker, Lieutenant Colonel Mike Musard, related his professional experience's and encouraged the troops to serve faithfully and diligently in service to the army and nation.

The graduation will soon allow for the formation of the first platoon of the 1st MP Company of the new AFL. Military Police play a key role in aiding commanders in maintaining order and enforcing discipline within the ranks. No professional army would function properly without dedicated, professional and well-trained military police. As these newly trained military police begin to use their new skills, unit commanders will find it easier to maintain good order and train their soldiers.

Officer Candidate School Graduation (18 April 2008)

{OCS Class 08-02 on graduation day on April 18th, 2008}

On April 18th 2008 the third officer candidate school class (08-02) under the U.S.-funded Security Sector Reform program graduated 18 future lieutenants for the new Armed Forces of Liberia at the Barclay Training Center in Monrovia. Upon commissioning the 18 graduates will raise the number of U.S trained officers in the AFL from 27 to 45. This is more than 50 percent of the 88 lieutenants the program is expected to recruit and train for the new army. This was also the largest OCS class thus far. The SSR program will run two more OCS classes before all initial entry training is completed in December 2008. Getting officer training past the half way point in the program is an exciting event.

Instructor Training Course Graduation (April 2008)

{The 18 graduates of the first Armed Forces of Liberia Instructor Training Course awaiting their graduation ceremony at Camp Ware (April 4th, 2008}


Camp Ware, Careysburg, April 4th, 2008:

The first Armed Forces of Liberia Instructor Training Course (ITC) with 18 students graduated from a five week program at Camp Ware, near Careysburg, Liberia on Friday April 4th, 2008. This class of AFL non-commissioned officers and soldiers will serve as part of a core group that may potentially be assigned to the future AFL Brigade Training Unit, or BTU. The BTU is intended to serve as the new army’s training organization that will run its basic training, infantry school, NCO leadership courses and the officer candidate school after the United States Government completes the Security Sector Reform program for the first 2,000 soldiers.

The five week course included classes on effective communication, teaching methods and how to plan for and conduct different types of training courses. Completion of the course is a first step in becoming qualified to be an instructor in the BTU. However, the skills the soldiers learned in this class can be applied to any training. In other words those who are not later assigned to the BTU can still apply their new skills in other AFL units.