ADF

ADF STAFF The water level behind the Grand Ethiopia Renaissance Dam (GERD) rose again in July, and tensions between Ethiopia and its downstream neighbors rose along with it. Ethiopia announced on July 20 that it had completed the second filling of the massive hydroelectric dam on the Blue Nile just south of the border with Sudan. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed made the announcement, adding that the filling “will not harm downstream countries.” Ahmed’s statement did little to appease Sudan and Egypt, who see the Ethiopian project as a threat to their access to freshwater. “What Ethiopia is doing is an…

ADF STAFF A new contest is calling on coders to take on illegal fishing. The U.S. Department of Defense and nongovernmental organization Global Fishing Watch recently launched the xView3 AI contest for software engineers who can use artificial intelligence (AI) to help track vessels engaged in illegal fishing. The winners must be able to follow fishing vessels that turn off their automatic identification systems (AIS) to avoid authorities — a practice known as “going dark”— by using space-based synthetic aperture radar (SAR). The technology can detect radar-reflective objects, such as industrial fishing trawlers, on the seas regardless of heavy clouds…

ADF STAFF The island nation of Seychelles became the world’s first country to issue a report on the management of its fisheries sector through the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) in April. Established in 2017, FiTI aims to collect and make public reliable data related to fishing. This includes the number of vessels licensed to fish in a particular country’s waters, catch data, information about the sustainability of fish stocks, and the economic value from various forms of fishing and fish processing, and more. Throughout Africa and beyond, maritime experts have long called for greater transparency among fisheries sectors to discourage…

ADF STAFF U.S. military trainers recently certified a dozen members of the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) and Kenyan Rapid Response Unit (RRU) as specialists in survival, evasion, resistance and escape (SERE) skills. The 12-week course was conducted in conjunction with the arrival of a C-145A Skytruck cargo plane earlier this year. Kenya is the first country in Africa to add a Skytruck to support its capacity for rapid response, aerial patrols and military intervention. The training expanded the KDF’s team of SERE instructors. “The training has helped build the confidence in operating in difficult conditions and has come in handy…

ADF STAFF Standing on the precipice of all-out civil war, Ethiopia shows no sign of turning around. Instead, the conflict has drawn in all of the country’s 10 separate ethnic regions. What started as a political dispute in the Tigray region nine months ago turned into a military conflict that has intensified dramatically. Allegations include civilian massacres, hundreds of reported rapes, and using access to food as a weapon by burning crops and denying humanitarian aid. “It is not hard to see this bad situation getting worse in a handful of different possible scenarios,” Michelle Gavin, senior fellow for Africa…

ADF STAFF When it comes to moving people and materiel around Africa, the enormous scale of the continent and its limited number of major roads and railroads means militaries often must take to the air. But African nations vary greatly in their airlift capacity, the age and origin of their equipment, and their policies for using those aircraft, according to a new Rand Corp. report, “Strategic Airlift in Africa.” The lack of forward operating bases or a hub-and-spoke system makes this challenge even greater. “That’s the crux of the problem,” Ben Caves, a Rand researcher told ADF. “This is only…

ADF STAFF The Chinese province of Fuji has announced a new wave of subsidies to expand its distant water fishing fleet from 600 to 650 vessels. The plan, reported by SeafoodSource, was revealed as China is accused of stalling negotiations with the World Trade Organization (WTO), which has worked for decades to ban subsidies that contribute to overfishing. Unchecked fishing, some of it illegal, threatens marine life, ecosystems, food security and the livelihoods of artisanal fishermen in West Africa. Among the Fujian fishing companies that would benefit from the new subsidies is Poly Hong Dong, which has a history of…

ADF STAFF The cease-fire that ended more than a decade of fighting in Libya included the demand that all foreign fighters leave the country. A series of international resolutions following the cease-fire echoed the call. Yet, more than 10 months after the October 2020 truce, an estimated 20,000 fighters from Chad, Russia, Sudan, and Syria remain in Libya. International observers say their presence continues to destabilize the country even as its political leaders try to stitch it back together. “If elections are to be held in December 2021 as scheduled, Libyans should be able to undertake that process in a safe…

ADF STAFF Members of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) stepped from a helicopter and sprinted toward a simulated enemy with their weapons drawn as a commanding officer barked instructions. It was the opening day of Operation Eagle Claws, an exercise meant to prepare military and emergency personnel to respond to terrorist threats. The five-day annual exercise included members of the Ghana Police Service, Ghana National Fire Service, National Disaster Management Organization, National Ambulance Service, and other security and intelligence agencies. It concluded in late May. “High Command intends to use this year’s exercise to equip troops with the requisite capacity…

ADF STAFF Maritime security experts warn that illegal fishing can undermine Africa’s “blue economy,” which includes the continent’s fisheries, tourism, aquaculture, transport, ports and oil drilling. The African Union Development Agency (AUDA) stated development of the blue economy is critical to the continent’s prosperity. “Africa is one of the most blessed continents in the world in terms of its potential marine and terrestrial natural resources,” wrote Seleman Yusuph Kitenge of the AUDA. “However, most of these riches, particularly the marine resources which contribute to the Blue Economy, are yet to be responsibly utilised to foster the economic transformation of a…