ADF

Botswana Takes a Comprehensive Approach to Safeguard One of Its Most Valuable Resources — Its Wildlife ADF STAFF Botswana’s commitment to its diverse and majestic wildlife is evident the moment visitors walk into Sir Seretse Khama International Airport in Gaborone. The centerpiece of the airport’s main entrance is a 2.5-ton life-size sculpture of an African elephant made entirely of ivory tusks. The tusks came from animals that died naturally. During the sculpture’s 2015 dedication, then-President Ian Khama said the elephant “will serve as a reminder to all who pass through this building that one live elephant is worth so much…

The 2019 Africa Land Forces Summit Stresses the Power of Partnerships Brig. Gen. Geraldine George of Liberia knows firsthand the value of working together against a common enemy. In her case, the enemy was the deadly West African Ebola outbreak of 2014-2016 that infected more than 28,600 people and eventually killed 11,325. Liberia was hardest hit in the outbreak, which also ravaged neighboring Guinea and Sierra Leone. George said that before the outbreak, Liberia had conducted joint operations with other security institutions and the Red Cross in case of emergency. However, Ebola quickly overwhelmed Liberia’s medical resources. So she witnessed…

U.S. Africa Command Staff Africa is more connected to the outside world than ever before. Roads, ports, airports and the internet are making it possible for merchants to sell their goods to buyers across the globe. This globalization has the potential to improve the standard of living for people in small villages and major cities. But global trade must be safeguarded from criminals seeking to exploit it. Because of Africa’s geography and a perceived lack of enforcement capacity, traffickers believe they can loot the continent’s wealth. Action is urgently needed. After years of decline, drug trafficking from South America to…

ADF STAFF Maj. Gen. Molefi Seikano is commander of Ground Forces Command for the Botswana Defence Force (BDF). He joined the BDF in 1985 and volunteered for the special forces unit, in which he held numerous positions. In June 2015, he was appointed commander of Ground Forces Command. Seikano spoke to ADF after the close of the Africa Land Forces Summit in Gaborone, Botswana, on June 27, 2019. The interview has been edited to fit this format. ADF: Please briefly summarize your service in the BDF, highlighting some of your favorite deployments before becoming commander of BDF Ground Forces Command.…

From algorithms to track “dark” ships smuggling stolen crude oil to an online licensing system to undercut corruption, Nigeria’s Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) hopes it can use new technology to tackle theft that has cost the country billions. In the oil-rich Niger Delta region, thieves tap pipelines and siphon crude into barrels aboard small craft. They then sail alongside larger vessels, allowing the contraband to be pumped into oil tankers bound for export, usually to Asia — mixing up to 10% stolen crude with legitimate product. Africa’s top oil exporter has turned to French data company Kpler to help…

The Security Structure in the Yaoundé Code of Conduct is Taking Shape in the Gulf of Guinea ADF STAFF Security professionals in the Gulf of Guinea know that if they want to spot criminals in the open water, the best place to look is along a maritime border. Historically, this has been the space where pirates, illegal fishermen and traffickers felt safest knowing that, if confronted, they could flee into another country’s waters. “That is the whole business of the bad guys,” said Senior Capt. Boniface Konan of the Côte d’Ivoire Navy. “Even if you look on [the automatic identification…

Through bribery and lax enforcement, Chinese businesses are taking billions of dollars’ worth of rosewood ADF STAFF China’s growing middle and upper classes have developed an inexhaustible demand for expensive, handmade rosewood furniture — and Africa is paying the price. The country’s fondness for rosewood furniture is nothing new. China has banned logging in its own natural forests and has been getting its rosewood from Malaysia and other countries in Southeast Asia. But China depleted the available resources in Asia and began logging in Africa about 2010, according to the U.S.-based charity Forest Trends. Now, a rosewood species native to…

ADF STAFF The Nile River, the world’s longest, meanders northward through the eastern half of Africa, bringing power, agriculture and, at times, recreation to the millions of people who live at or near its banks. A little recreation and relief was just what was on the minds of people in Khartoum, Sudan, on a hot day in April 2019. Residents waded out into the river’s expanse, rolling up pant legs and doffing shoes to bathe their feet. Others lugged lawn chairs and a few wooden tables into the river to relax amid its gentle flow. After a while, some arranged…

Secret Chinese Criminal Societies Make Millions Poaching Abalone ADF STAFF A net full of abalone isn’t much to behold. Their gray shells are covered with algae, and when cracked open they reveal a sea snail and an iridescent interior. But to those who traffic in it, abalone is worth its weight in gold. Between 2006 and 2016, 96 million of the mollusks were stolen from South African waters. This bounty is worth nearly $900 million, the conservation group TRAFFIC reported. In Hong Kong, the primary destination, abalone is a delicacy, prized for its buttery flavor. The kingpins who run the…

REUTERS Abla Ogodo used to walk 10 kilometers to fetch water for her family. Now that a new well in her village runs on solar power, she does not have to go anywhere. The United Kingdom-based power company BBOXX, in partnership with France’s EDF Group, has launched a program to power the entire village of Sikpe-Afidegnon with energy from the sun. It runs streetlights, houses, schools and shops, transforming this remote maze of red dirt streets in southern Togo whose only previous access to electricity was from noisy generators that ran on expensive and polluting fuel oil. “We would spend…