AU pre-benchmarking delegation meets AMISOM and Somalia military

24 Mar 2015

AU pre-benchmarking delegation meets AMISOM and Somalia military

Mogadishu, March 24, 2015 – A team from the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, is in Mogadishu to meet with senior AMISOM peacekeepers and Somalia National Army in a pre-benchmarking inspection and assessment of the capabilities of AMISOM and Somalia National Army.

This meeting is taking place ahead of a major assessment scheduled for April which will determine the suitability of deploying to Somalia, peacekeepers from the United Nations Peacekeeping Operation (UNPKO).

The meeting was attended by the Somalia Chief of Staff General Dahir Adan Elmi, his Deputy Major General Abdirizak Khalif Elmi, AMISOM Sector One contingent commander Brigadier Sam Kavuma, who represented the AMISOM Acting Force Commander Major General Jonathan Rono and other senior AMISOM military officers from the Force Headquarters.

The AU team is expected to determine AMISOM’s deployment status, audit the threat assessment posed by Al-Shabaab militants, the number of Somalia National Army soldiers already trained by AMISOM and the basis for support to the Somalia National Security forces.

The visiting AU delegation received an update on the African Union Mission in Somalia from the AMISOM operations commander Colonel George Walwa and his team.
They are also scheduled to meet with the United Nations Support Mission for AMISOM (UNSOA) which is the UN agency that provides logistical support to AMISOM.