DAI : Our Work : Projects

In collaboration with Joint Special Operations Task Force-Trans-Sahara, DAI is conducting an innovative Trans-Sahara Security Symposium (TSS) in support of the Trans-Sahara Counter-Terrorism Partnership. The year-long training series supports the interagency (Department of Defense, Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development)effort to build civil-military capacity for greater security and cooperation in the region. TSS goals include:

Identifying regional and/or country-specific issues that affect human development in Sahelian Africa and may contribute to the spread of extremism and instability;

Building civil-military capacity in diplomatic, defense, and development strategies that counter instability and extremist ideology while minimizing the recruitment of disaffected individuals; and

Enabling participants, both military and civilian, to employ new strategies in security and stability through enhanced coordination and collaboration with relevant groups.

DAI engages African specialists to lead the training. The instructor pool draws from leading civilian authorities, field-experienced academics, and former military officials. DAI facilitates this training in French and/or English, where appropriate. Country-level workshops and regional trainings are held over a five-day period at various locations in the region. Representatives of local and international organizations, the United Nations, and other donors play a key role.

Training consists of three regional and five country-specific training events, targeting audiences from—and ideally hosted in—Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal. Courses will highlight creative ways to enhance civil-military coordination between mid-level West African military officers, selected civilian authorities (such as emergency responders), and other partners in civil society (such as nongovernmental organizations).

The training explores the impact of current human development issues on stability and introduces early warning tools to identify emerging conflict triggers, as well as civil-military strategies and appropriate interventions to build governments’ capacity to prevent and mitigate crisis situations.

Upon completion of the course, military officers and civilian officials can inform and advise their governments on the scope of civil-military operations and the full range of stakeholders involved. Regional trainings bring together military officers from neighboring countries to discuss regional issues and identify new avenues of cooperation across borders. These new relationships readily translate into regional partnerships that will help prevent extremist elements from being able to exploit crises as they occur.