WEBVTT 00:00.160 --> 00:01.390 - Hey good afternoon everybody. 00:01.390 --> 00:03.360 My name is Major General Roger Cloutier. 00:03.360 --> 00:05.980 I am the commander of U.S. Army Africa's 00:05.980 --> 00:07.763 Southern European task force, 00:08.310 --> 00:09.380 and it's great to be here. 00:09.380 --> 00:10.870 We appreciate the opportunity 00:10.870 --> 00:12.373 to present at Warriors Corner. 00:12.540 --> 00:13.640 On behalf of myself 00:13.640 --> 00:15.330 and Command Sergeant Major Jeremiah Inman, 00:15.330 --> 00:18.040 my sergeant major, we look forward to talking about 00:18.040 --> 00:19.590 a really important topic, 00:19.590 --> 00:22.613 and that's growing enlisted leadership in Africa. 00:23.220 --> 00:25.480 I can't wait for you to hear from my sergeant major, 00:25.480 --> 00:27.450 from Warrant Officer One, Bisalomu, 00:27.450 --> 00:29.100 and from First Sergeant Lewis, 00:29.100 --> 00:31.260 who was the first sergeant, company first sergeant, 00:31.260 --> 00:33.260 as part of our regionally aligned forces 00:33.670 --> 00:35.140 from the 10th Mountain Division. 00:35.140 --> 00:37.490 But before I go any further, I wanna say a special 00:37.490 --> 00:39.363 welcome to Major General Sekano, 00:39.870 --> 00:41.300 the commander of ground forces 00:41.300 --> 00:43.240 from the Botswanan Defence Forces. 00:43.240 --> 00:45.020 Welcome sir, we're glad you're here. 00:45.020 --> 00:47.520 I also wanna welcome our other African partners 00:47.730 --> 00:50.023 that are in the audience today. 00:50.330 --> 00:52.250 So we all know that non-commissioned officers 00:52.250 --> 00:53.853 are the backbone of any army, 00:54.030 --> 00:56.090 and because of that I'm just gonna tee it up, 00:56.090 --> 00:56.923 and get out of the way, 00:56.923 --> 00:58.540 and let the sergeant major get after it. 00:58.540 --> 00:59.940 But NCO development is something 00:59.940 --> 01:03.063 that we are passionate about in USARAF, 01:03.320 --> 01:06.970 and training or doing operations in the AFRICOM AOR 01:07.900 --> 01:10.963 really puts a premium on small-unit leadership. 01:11.210 --> 01:13.890 Small units working in austere environments 01:13.890 --> 01:15.463 in remote locations. 01:15.730 --> 01:18.500 They work with joint partners, inter-agency partners, 01:18.500 --> 01:19.963 multinational partners, 01:20.060 --> 01:22.940 and Sergeant Major Inman is gonna give his perspective 01:23.070 --> 01:26.450 on how Army NCOs benefit from training 01:26.450 --> 01:27.863 in the African environment. 01:28.060 --> 01:30.280 Warrant Officer One Bisalomu 01:30.810 --> 01:33.700 is gonna talk about Malawi's Sergeant Majors course, 01:33.700 --> 01:35.493 which has been a great success, 01:35.540 --> 01:38.973 and modeled after the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy. 01:39.130 --> 01:42.653 So U.S. Army soldiers help stand up the Academy in 2014. 01:42.750 --> 01:45.650 They trained their trainers as part of the initial course. 01:45.740 --> 01:47.720 The course is now run entirely 01:48.040 --> 01:49.860 by the Malawi Defence Force, 01:49.860 --> 01:52.320 and it's become a regional institution 01:52.620 --> 01:55.983 graduating more than 240 Sergeants Major, 01:56.080 --> 01:59.960 males and females, from 18 different African countries. 01:59.960 --> 02:03.053 We're very, very proud of this partnership. 02:03.100 --> 02:05.223 So we've got a short video to show you, 02:05.240 --> 02:08.003 and then our featured speakers will take the floor. 02:08.530 --> 02:10.083 Thank you again for being here, 02:10.110 --> 02:13.283 and we appreciate all of your support. 02:13.420 --> 02:15.120 Let's go ahead and roll the video. 02:19.990 --> 02:21.150 - I would just say that we're doing 02:21.150 --> 02:22.340 a wonderful job down there. 02:22.340 --> 02:25.220 Our focus although it's a very big continent, 02:25.220 --> 02:27.620 and we sometimes can't get in there in great numbers. 02:27.620 --> 02:28.930 It does have a huge impact, 02:28.930 --> 02:31.530 not just on the military down there, but the people. 02:32.450 --> 02:34.867 (epic music) 02:46.273 --> 02:48.570 - [Soldiers] Live, fight, die hard, oh yeah! 02:48.570 --> 02:50.410 - You know, as Americans we don't fight alone, 02:50.410 --> 02:51.560 and we never intend to. 02:51.980 --> 02:53.280 It's about building allies 02:53.390 --> 02:54.970 with our partner nations around the world. 02:54.970 --> 02:57.020 Africa is one of those key components. 02:59.828 --> 03:02.411 (rifle firing) 03:05.998 --> 03:08.850 - It is up to us to bring forward creative 03:08.850 --> 03:11.123 and viable solutions to these challenges, 03:11.840 --> 03:14.320 and view each one as an opportunity 03:15.170 --> 03:17.360 to work with and assist our African partners, 03:17.360 --> 03:20.020 not only today but in the future as well. 03:21.281 --> 03:23.698 (epic music) 03:34.098 --> 03:35.060 - I'd also like to acknowledge 03:35.060 --> 03:36.610 the many leaders here representing 03:36.610 --> 03:38.270 the U.S. government and their agency, 03:38.270 --> 03:40.253 our allies and our regional partners. 03:40.570 --> 03:42.830 Thanks for your presence, thanks for your support, 03:42.830 --> 03:45.583 and thank you for your long-standing cooperation. 03:46.268 --> 03:48.220 The world's stronger because of our friendship 03:48.220 --> 03:49.520 and our shared commitment. 03:51.060 --> 03:53.477 (epic music) 04:21.418 --> 04:26.418 - Keep it going, keep it going, keep it going. 04:30.163 --> 04:33.163 (soldiers chanting) 04:46.900 --> 04:48.160 - Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, 04:48.160 --> 04:50.490 I'm Jeremiah Inman, the Command Sergeant Major 04:50.490 --> 04:52.103 for U.S. Army Africa. 04:52.400 --> 04:54.410 I'd like to thank you for blowing off 04:54.410 --> 04:57.310 the family forum, and being here with us today. 04:57.310 --> 05:00.523 I hope you get a lot out of it, slide please. 05:03.070 --> 05:06.653 So every year we hold Africa Land Forces Summit. 05:07.090 --> 05:09.440 We'll go down, link up with our partner nation, 05:09.520 --> 05:11.620 and find out what topics they would like 05:11.620 --> 05:14.043 to discuss during that forum. 05:14.360 --> 05:16.190 The three topics the senior listed leader 05:16.190 --> 05:18.257 wanted to discuss was roles of the NCO, 05:19.720 --> 05:24.720 how we educate and promote NCOs, and NCO empowerment. 05:25.440 --> 05:28.090 So what I did, I took a kind of different spin on it, 05:28.400 --> 05:31.973 and we talked about the role of the U.S. Army NCO, 05:32.200 --> 05:34.023 we talked about the STEP program, 05:34.290 --> 05:36.193 and then we talked about empowerment. 05:36.690 --> 05:41.303 And I explained the way that the U.S. Army does things. 05:41.410 --> 05:43.573 This is what we need from a Sergeant E-5, 05:43.750 --> 05:46.300 this is what we need from a Command Sergeant Major. 05:46.700 --> 05:48.560 We didn't preach at them, 05:48.560 --> 05:51.533 saying this is how your NCO corp, 05:51.670 --> 05:54.293 this is how your enlisted force needs to happen. 05:54.770 --> 05:58.303 Our Army's been around for a little over 240 years, 05:58.690 --> 06:02.763 our NCO program works for us, here's how we do it. 06:02.950 --> 06:05.713 If you need assistance standing up your programs, 06:05.810 --> 06:07.910 please let us know, and we'll assist you 06:07.910 --> 06:09.263 with getting after those. 06:09.350 --> 06:10.283 Next slide please. 06:11.660 --> 06:15.093 So here you'll see Sergeant Major Gilpin, my predecessor. 06:15.510 --> 06:18.380 So he was the one who had the initiative 06:18.380 --> 06:20.940 to get NCOs invited to ALFS. 06:21.414 --> 06:24.090 This was only the second time that NCOs were allowed 06:24.210 --> 06:27.383 to attend this seminar with their general officers. 06:28.360 --> 06:30.993 As you can see, one of our partners from Zimbabwe. 06:31.980 --> 06:35.063 There are 53 countries that we cover down on. 06:35.320 --> 06:38.633 Each country's army is a little bit different, 06:38.870 --> 06:41.743 'cause it's gotta support the needs of their country. 06:42.220 --> 06:44.420 That's how they get after their development. 06:44.940 --> 06:48.359 At this point, we have about 100 African 06:48.359 --> 06:50.860 Command Sergeant Majors who have attended 06:50.860 --> 06:53.473 the U.S. Army Sergeant Majors course. 06:53.650 --> 06:55.383 Eight graduated last year. 06:55.460 --> 06:58.453 There are five currently in the course this year. 06:58.620 --> 07:01.570 So there is a desire from our African partners 07:01.710 --> 07:04.490 to continue educating our enlisted partners. 07:04.490 --> 07:05.403 Next slide please. 07:07.310 --> 07:08.530 So you're probably thinking, 07:08.530 --> 07:11.550 okay, this is the Army association event, 07:11.550 --> 07:15.253 why is there an Air Force dude in the slide, okay? 07:15.430 --> 07:16.833 This is Chief James. 07:17.160 --> 07:21.093 He's the command senior enlisted leader for California. 07:21.610 --> 07:23.710 We have 11 states that are partnered 07:23.710 --> 07:26.053 with 13 countries in Africa, 07:26.160 --> 07:30.553 to assist us with getting after AFRICOM's priorities. 07:31.120 --> 07:33.630 At this point here, Chief is briefing 07:33.630 --> 07:36.420 what the requirements of a staff sergeant 07:36.750 --> 07:38.513 in the United States Army is. 07:39.150 --> 07:40.753 Not the Air Force, but the Army. 07:41.140 --> 07:43.313 So, don't tell Sergeant Major Daley, 07:43.370 --> 07:47.103 but I did not go to the U.S. Army Sergeant Majors course. 07:47.610 --> 07:52.073 All right, I went to the Air Force senior enlisted course. 07:52.310 --> 07:55.150 So it doesn't matter where enlisted and NCOs 07:55.150 --> 07:56.443 get their education. 07:56.870 --> 08:00.020 It matters that they get the education 08:00.020 --> 08:02.370 so they can contribute to their fighting force. 08:03.380 --> 08:04.313 Next slide please. 08:05.570 --> 08:07.470 So here you have a Ghanaian sergeant 08:07.720 --> 08:10.250 teaching U.S. Army specialists 08:10.570 --> 08:12.913 basic hand and arm signals. 08:13.560 --> 08:16.530 We as leaders, need to continue to teach 08:16.530 --> 08:18.263 and empower our subordinates, 08:18.420 --> 08:21.653 because they're gonna take our place here in a few years. 08:22.460 --> 08:26.393 I was a TAC NCO at West Point about 15 years ago, 08:26.560 --> 08:29.793 and today I ran into one of my cadets who's a SF Major. 08:30.370 --> 08:32.040 These are the folks that are gonna continue 08:32.040 --> 08:33.570 to move our Army forward, 08:33.570 --> 08:35.800 and we gotta continue to educate them 08:35.840 --> 08:37.293 and make them stronger. 08:39.650 --> 08:43.333 In current battle, if a platoon leader falls, 08:43.440 --> 08:46.013 an NCO, an enlisted individual, 08:46.070 --> 08:49.223 will step up and take that platoon leader's spot. 08:49.570 --> 08:51.513 If he hasn't been educated properly, 08:51.710 --> 08:53.603 if he hasn't been trained properly, 08:53.740 --> 08:56.393 then the mission is probably not gonna be successful. 08:57.020 --> 09:00.653 Consider this, if you had to go in for a medical procedure, 09:01.490 --> 09:03.290 wouldn't you want a doctor who was educated 09:03.290 --> 09:05.623 and trained to perform the procedure on you? 09:06.440 --> 09:08.513 I would, next slide please. 09:11.490 --> 09:16.010 So how does educating our enlisted contribute to readiness? 09:16.010 --> 09:18.963 All right, the big buzzword, readiness. 09:19.490 --> 09:22.310 If we can educate our partners and ourselves 09:22.320 --> 09:26.063 to defeat VEO threats before they come to the homeland, 09:26.650 --> 09:28.943 that builds readiness. 09:29.060 --> 09:31.310 If we can teach our partners and educate them 09:31.530 --> 09:35.010 to defeat and kill the folks within their continent 09:35.560 --> 09:38.113 so we don't have to send U.S. forces to fight, 09:38.550 --> 09:40.623 that builds readiness. 09:41.190 --> 09:42.023 So chief and I were walking 09:42.023 --> 09:45.313 around the World War II memorial the other day, 09:46.461 --> 09:47.294 and I just wanted to quote 09:47.294 --> 09:49.823 something I saw from President Truman. 09:50.467 --> 09:53.100 "The heroism of our own was matched 09:53.287 --> 09:55.607 "by that of the armed forces of the nations 09:55.607 --> 09:57.313 "that fought by our side. 09:57.397 --> 09:58.993 "They absorbed the blows, 09:59.037 --> 10:00.347 "and they shared the full 10:00.347 --> 10:02.797 "and the ultimate destruction of the enemy." 10:03.370 --> 10:04.870 Hey man, we don't fight alone. 10:04.910 --> 10:06.433 We fight with our partners. 10:06.780 --> 10:10.210 If we're educated, it's not only good 10:10.210 --> 10:14.243 for continent of Africa, but it's good for the world. 10:14.530 --> 10:16.900 A great example of an NCO course, 10:16.900 --> 10:19.083 is the Malawian Sergeant Majors Academy. 10:19.410 --> 10:20.960 I can't speak very well on it, 10:20.960 --> 10:22.070 so I'd like to introduce 10:22.070 --> 10:24.553 Army Warrant Officer Chief Bisalomu, 10:25.650 --> 10:28.623 basically the Sergeant Major of the Army for Malawi. 10:29.600 --> 10:30.433 Chief. 10:37.816 --> 10:40.580 - Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. 10:40.580 --> 10:44.043 I'm Warrant Officer One George Bisalomu, 10:44.470 --> 10:48.273 Defence Force Sergeant Major, Malawi Defence Force. 10:49.160 --> 10:53.520 I'm here to outline how Malawi Defence Force 10:53.520 --> 10:55.433 Sergeant Major is doing. 10:56.040 --> 10:59.023 So I will cover the following. 10:59.640 --> 11:02.700 I will cover when Malawi Defence Force 11:02.700 --> 11:04.363 Sergeant Major starts. 11:05.610 --> 11:09.230 I will cover also the partnership 11:09.230 --> 11:12.883 we have with U.S. Army through AFRICOM. 11:13.950 --> 11:17.280 Then I will cover the successes of 11:17.530 --> 11:21.363 Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors Academy. 11:21.820 --> 11:25.290 Lastly, I will cover the challenges 11:25.290 --> 11:28.430 we are facing in Malawi Defence Force 11:28.440 --> 11:31.263 Sergeant Majors course. 11:32.690 --> 11:35.180 The Malawi Sergeant Majors course 11:35.220 --> 11:39.653 started four years ago. 11:40.020 --> 11:42.960 It was 2014 when the first class 11:42.960 --> 11:45.873 of Sergeant Majors Academy started. 11:47.020 --> 11:51.280 Before 2014, it was 2011 and 2012 11:51.720 --> 11:56.720 when U.S. AFRICOM gave Malawi Defence Force 11:57.440 --> 12:00.370 one slot, so that Malawi Defence Force 12:00.650 --> 12:03.610 can send one sergeant major to attend 12:03.800 --> 12:06.913 sergeant majors course at USASMA. 12:07.440 --> 12:10.010 After graduating one sergeant major from there, 12:10.010 --> 12:11.990 it's when he come back to Malawi 12:12.607 --> 12:16.303 and convinced the leadership of Malawi Defence Force. 12:16.400 --> 12:20.340 So come 2013 is when the Malawi Defence Force 12:21.410 --> 12:26.410 authorized to organize and start Sergeant Majors Academy 12:26.940 --> 12:28.893 to start in 2014. 12:29.300 --> 12:34.300 So the purpose of the sergeant majors course in Malawi 12:35.420 --> 12:38.800 is to change from tactical level of thinking 12:39.120 --> 12:41.463 to operational level of thinking. 12:41.920 --> 12:45.980 So as of now, I can say that 12:46.580 --> 12:48.730 the partnership we have 12:48.730 --> 12:52.703 from Malawi Defence Force and the U.S. AFRICOM, 12:53.150 --> 12:56.830 it is very important, and it is very successful. 12:56.830 --> 12:59.410 Because through this partnership 12:59.480 --> 13:01.780 is when the Malawi Defence Force 13:01.960 --> 13:06.283 started our Sergeant Majors Academy. 13:06.600 --> 13:10.813 When our sergeant major started in 2014, 13:12.120 --> 13:17.120 it was U.S. AFRICOM sent two instructors from the U.S. Army 13:17.920 --> 13:20.547 to teach the Malawi Defence Force 13:20.547 --> 13:23.723 sergeants majors course for the first class. 13:24.150 --> 13:27.780 After graduating the first class 13:27.860 --> 13:30.140 is when the two sergeant majors choose 13:30.350 --> 13:33.613 some instructors from the class 001. 13:33.860 --> 13:38.023 And the sergeant majors who assisted Malawi a lot, 13:38.023 --> 13:41.307 they are Sergeant Major Mikail 13:41.307 --> 13:43.724 and Sergeant Major Timoswats. 13:44.840 --> 13:48.000 These two instructors are serving in Malawi Defence Force 13:48.225 --> 13:52.033 Sergeant Majors Academy very, very good. 13:53.326 --> 13:58.270 As I'm talking today, Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Major, 13:58.270 --> 14:00.470 we are doing very good. 14:01.200 --> 14:04.453 Our successes of Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Major, 14:04.812 --> 14:08.310 I'm happy to say that through the partnership 14:08.310 --> 14:12.653 we have with U.S. AFRICOM and Malawi Defence Force, 14:13.470 --> 14:17.110 the partnership is extended to almost 14:18.165 --> 14:21.763 11 countries from Africa. 14:22.220 --> 14:24.840 These 11 countries from Africa, 14:24.840 --> 14:28.027 they have been sending their senior NCOs 14:28.640 --> 14:31.493 to attend Sergeant Majors Academy. 14:31.910 --> 14:35.713 I'm happy today to mention one by one 14:36.150 --> 14:40.457 of the countries, which they send their NCOs 14:41.040 --> 14:44.663 to Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors Academy. 14:44.910 --> 14:47.660 But before I mention that countries 14:47.660 --> 14:50.477 a number of graduates who graduated from 14:50.477 --> 14:53.593 Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors course. 14:53.840 --> 14:55.883 I would like to say this. 14:56.802 --> 14:59.763 The Sergeant Majors Academy is free. 15:00.610 --> 15:03.290 When there are other countries from Africa 15:03.360 --> 15:05.760 send their NCOs to attend the course 15:05.760 --> 15:09.280 in Malawi Defence Force, we don't charge anything. 15:09.280 --> 15:10.680 They don't pay anything. 15:10.680 --> 15:12.760 We just send the invitation 15:13.385 --> 15:15.817 to our sister countries in Africa. 15:16.040 --> 15:18.820 When they come to Malawi, they just learn, 15:18.820 --> 15:22.623 and they do everything freely, no pay at all. 15:22.770 --> 15:25.613 So I'm happy to say that. 15:26.950 --> 15:29.330 So I would like to, I'll tell you 15:29.820 --> 15:33.790 how the numbers, which African countries 15:33.940 --> 15:37.053 graduated from Malawi Defence Force. 15:37.500 --> 15:42.500 Firstly, Zambia, 13 graduates from Zambia. 15:44.630 --> 15:47.793 There are also seven graduates from Zimbabwe. 15:48.630 --> 15:53.463 We have almost eight graduates from Botswana Defence Force. 15:54.660 --> 15:59.660 Five from the Kingdom of Lesotho, five graduates. 16:00.710 --> 16:03.153 From Tanzania, four graduates. 16:03.510 --> 16:05.663 Kenya, one graduate. 16:06.140 --> 16:08.610 Mozambique, five graduates. 16:08.610 --> 16:13.610 Nigeria, five, Namibia, four, and Rwanda, eight. 16:14.850 --> 16:17.810 So this is the successes of 16:17.810 --> 16:20.343 Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors. 16:21.330 --> 16:23.720 Apart from this, the sergeant majors 16:23.720 --> 16:26.593 who attended this course in Malawi Defence Force, 16:26.700 --> 16:29.683 they are now in the high position. 16:30.030 --> 16:33.993 They're holding the position of regimental sergeant majors, 16:35.040 --> 16:36.750 brigade sergeant majors, 16:36.750 --> 16:39.470 and even the company sergeant majors. 16:39.470 --> 16:43.690 I myself, as I'm now, I'm a graduate from the 16:44.390 --> 16:47.563 first class of the Sergeant Majors Academy. 16:48.310 --> 16:51.763 But despite these successes, 16:52.210 --> 16:54.760 Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors Academy, 16:54.847 --> 16:57.563 first thing, a lot of challenges. 16:59.730 --> 17:02.883 Some of these challenges are infrastructures. 17:04.520 --> 17:07.263 As Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors started, 17:08.060 --> 17:11.273 we just started using the infrastructure 17:11.744 --> 17:14.327 of Malawi Armed Forces College. 17:14.630 --> 17:18.373 As of now, we don't have our own infrastructure. 17:18.717 --> 17:20.520 As a result, we are suffering 17:20.870 --> 17:24.663 when we want to implement our programs, 17:25.230 --> 17:28.593 Defence Force Sergeant Majors Academy. 17:29.030 --> 17:32.280 Since we are doing the Sergeant Majors Academy 17:32.610 --> 17:34.580 at Malawi Armed Forces College. 17:34.580 --> 17:38.770 So when the college is busy with other courses, 17:38.770 --> 17:40.743 so it comes this go to Malawi, 17:41.040 --> 17:45.580 Sergeant Majors course to continue with our programs. 17:45.580 --> 17:50.480 So if possible, if US AFRICOM continue assisting us 17:50.480 --> 17:53.050 to have our own infrastructure 17:53.050 --> 17:56.493 in terms of classroom, in terms of accommodation, 17:57.130 --> 18:01.810 in terms of office equipment like computers 18:01.919 --> 18:06.360 and other material so that we can go ahead, 18:06.360 --> 18:10.450 we can continue with implementation of programs 18:10.450 --> 18:14.203 in Malawi Defence Sergeant Majors course. 18:14.720 --> 18:19.540 Other challenge is, as I said earlier on that, 18:19.540 --> 18:24.023 we are doing this course, Sergeant Majors course, 18:24.050 --> 18:25.483 we do our own. 18:25.950 --> 18:30.950 So we need or we request our partners, 18:30.970 --> 18:33.950 US AFRICOM, to continue supporting us. 18:33.950 --> 18:37.990 So that maybe they can allow our instructors 18:38.000 --> 18:42.370 to visit USASMA so that they can get more experience 18:42.650 --> 18:46.733 from United States Sergeant Majors Academy. 18:47.200 --> 18:52.080 So if possible, I'd like to request US AFRICOM 18:52.520 --> 18:57.520 to assist my instructors so that they can have a visit tour 18:58.000 --> 19:03.000 to United States, in short I can say to USASMA. 19:03.490 --> 19:08.127 So if possible, US AFRICOM try to assist us. 19:09.800 --> 19:13.683 With that, Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors Academy, 19:13.720 --> 19:18.590 we are doing well, and we are very proud 19:18.920 --> 19:21.090 that Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Major, 19:21.090 --> 19:23.410 we are doing very good. 19:23.760 --> 19:26.213 Thank you for your attention, thank you. 19:27.689 --> 19:30.856 (audience applauding) 19:34.339 --> 19:35.672 - How you doing? 19:37.045 --> 19:37.878 How are you doing? 19:37.878 --> 19:39.470 My name is First Sergeant Abraham Lewis. 19:39.470 --> 19:41.180 I am with 10th Mountain Division. 19:41.180 --> 19:42.740 I'm gonna give you kind of a 19:44.700 --> 19:47.583 idea of what we did as the 10th Mountain Division. 19:47.890 --> 19:51.313 In September of 2016, yeah '16, 19:51.710 --> 19:55.173 we were chosen to be the East African Response Force. 19:55.650 --> 19:56.500 I was the first sergeant for 19:56.500 --> 19:58.150 the East African Response Force. 19:58.150 --> 20:01.680 We did about six months in Djibouti, Africa 20:02.020 --> 20:05.513 in which we would train with, 20:05.890 --> 20:08.113 not only the French, the German, 20:08.490 --> 20:11.003 but also the Djiboutian forces as well. 20:11.240 --> 20:16.200 They joined into a actual Marine Corps Corporals course 20:16.350 --> 20:18.563 and joined some of their training. 20:20.060 --> 20:23.033 One of the fears before we left was readiness, 20:23.150 --> 20:26.113 as of course, is the whole entire Army's fear. 20:26.380 --> 20:30.180 What we got though out of that whole entire time 20:30.430 --> 20:33.323 was we got 24 Expert Infantryman Badges, 20:33.570 --> 20:37.263 17 Desert, French Desert Warfare Badges, 20:37.600 --> 20:40.473 14 German Armed Forces Badges. 20:40.630 --> 20:42.740 We completed team live fires all the way up 20:42.740 --> 20:43.873 to platoon stakes. 20:44.696 --> 20:47.203 We also did this in an unfamiliar environment, 20:47.470 --> 20:50.590 which of course, when you take a bunch of infantry, 20:50.590 --> 20:53.533 and you put them in unfamiliar environment, 20:53.720 --> 20:56.070 you get nothing but the best training possible. 20:57.870 --> 20:59.813 Then we came back in about March, 21:00.340 --> 21:02.283 and we were told three months later, 21:03.240 --> 21:05.193 that we're gonna go to Ghana. 21:06.310 --> 21:09.900 So what we did was we did our team live fires, 21:09.900 --> 21:12.050 and we did squad live fires before we left. 21:12.510 --> 21:15.340 Once we left, or before we left, 21:15.340 --> 21:17.610 then we also took our soldiers, 21:17.610 --> 21:18.730 and we took our specialists 21:18.730 --> 21:20.730 because a lot of our sergeants 21:20.730 --> 21:23.063 had to go to NCO development courses. 21:23.140 --> 21:24.450 So we took our specialists, 21:24.450 --> 21:26.430 and we put them into the classes 21:26.430 --> 21:28.633 to teach our Ghanaian partners, 21:28.720 --> 21:30.327 in which they were then told, 21:30.327 --> 21:32.177 "All right, you are on the hot seat." 21:32.680 --> 21:33.913 It was outstanding. 21:34.400 --> 21:38.283 We left the ones at Ghana in about August, 21:38.490 --> 21:40.193 and we spent a month over there. 21:41.670 --> 21:45.023 We partnered our NCOs with their NCOs. 21:45.220 --> 21:49.263 Up here, you can see Warrant Officer Two, Tete. 21:49.760 --> 21:51.003 He was my partner. 21:52.370 --> 21:53.670 He was a great individual. 21:53.800 --> 21:56.693 We did PT with him in the mornings. 21:56.950 --> 21:58.700 Then what we do is we flip-flop. 21:58.700 --> 22:00.403 We would teach one of our courses, 22:01.050 --> 22:04.283 which would be in either tactics, maneuvers or medical, 22:04.450 --> 22:06.210 and then they would teach a light course. 22:06.210 --> 22:07.983 This did two things. 22:08.230 --> 22:12.163 One, it gave them buy-in for us or to them 22:12.163 --> 22:13.830 so that we were there to listen 22:13.830 --> 22:15.030 to what they had to say. 22:15.310 --> 22:18.603 Two, it also showed them what we could provide to them, 22:19.000 --> 22:21.963 which was outstanding when it came to partnership. 22:24.580 --> 22:27.853 We also conducted squad live fires while we were there. 22:28.020 --> 22:30.540 Again, this is during squad live fires 22:30.710 --> 22:32.510 in a completely foreign environment. 22:32.570 --> 22:35.253 We had to develop our own live fire lane. 22:35.580 --> 22:37.180 Then we went out and execute it. 22:37.410 --> 22:38.970 Not only did we execute 22:39.310 --> 22:42.100 but we also went with the Ghanaian Army, 22:42.100 --> 22:44.273 and they executed the exact same thing. 22:44.560 --> 22:46.580 So we got outstanding training, 22:46.580 --> 22:48.980 and they got outstanding training along with it. 22:50.220 --> 22:53.993 After we got done with United Corp 18, 22:54.510 --> 22:56.183 we went to Jungle Warfare School. 22:56.720 --> 22:59.913 This was probably the best experience for my young soldiers. 23:00.800 --> 23:02.690 We received some excellent training 23:02.690 --> 23:06.393 in jungle warfare fighting and surviving, 23:07.870 --> 23:11.433 which culminated at the end in four days in the jungle. 23:13.100 --> 23:15.320 This built a lot of good relationships 23:15.320 --> 23:17.470 with the NCOs of the Jungle Warfare School. 23:17.860 --> 23:20.330 In fact, one of the Jungle Warfare School instructors 23:20.330 --> 23:24.040 was a soldier, who went to one of our BLCs 23:24.040 --> 23:25.053 here in the States, 23:25.320 --> 23:28.493 and which was outstanding because as he was instructing, 23:28.770 --> 23:30.710 they used the British tactics, 23:30.710 --> 23:32.763 we used, of course, our American tactics. 23:32.930 --> 23:35.050 He could then bounced back and forth, 23:35.050 --> 23:38.400 and understand that what we were coming with, 23:38.400 --> 23:40.210 but we were also flexible since we just got 23:40.210 --> 23:43.390 done doing United Corp 18 to understand their tactics 23:43.390 --> 23:44.940 as we were going through there. 23:46.620 --> 23:48.890 The experience for the whole entire thing 23:48.890 --> 23:50.823 built stronger junior leaders for us. 23:51.850 --> 23:53.883 Not, I mean it is not very, 23:54.160 --> 23:56.680 we have our woods here in the United States 23:56.950 --> 23:59.783 but it is nothing compared to the jungles of Africa, 24:00.710 --> 24:03.453 which was outstanding for our NCOs. 24:03.540 --> 24:08.290 It also met with our NCOs both ways. 24:08.290 --> 24:11.223 We met with their NCOs, they met with our NCOs. 24:12.080 --> 24:16.233 I think it, overall maintained readiness within our force. 24:16.800 --> 24:17.633 Thank you. 24:18.661 --> 24:21.828 (audience applauding) 24:22.082 --> 24:23.740 (speaking faintly) 24:23.740 --> 24:25.210 - Hey, just I would like to highlight 24:25.210 --> 24:26.410 a few things real quick. 24:27.020 --> 24:28.400 Somebody's being a little bit humble 24:28.400 --> 24:30.203 about their Sergeant Majors Academy. 24:30.470 --> 24:32.393 I was able to go down there in March, 24:32.550 --> 24:36.770 and talked to a handful of the 40 plus graduates 24:36.820 --> 24:39.630 both male and female, who were very excited 24:39.630 --> 24:42.710 about taking something similar back to their countries, 24:42.710 --> 24:45.623 and attempting to stand up the same programs. 24:45.950 --> 24:48.453 Of course, we stand by ready to assist with that. 24:48.970 --> 24:51.143 What's this so what, what's the way ahead? 24:51.500 --> 24:52.960 Based off AFRICOM's guidance, 24:52.960 --> 24:55.310 we're hoping to work with our African partners, 24:55.330 --> 24:58.710 and perhaps build regional educational institutes 24:59.100 --> 25:02.193 across the continent over the next three to five years, 25:02.420 --> 25:04.790 and then continue to expand on that 25:04.890 --> 25:07.103 based off capacity and need. 25:07.550 --> 25:11.720 Speaking with the commandant of MAFCO, 25:11.720 --> 25:14.663 which is the MCOE basically for Malawi, 25:17.110 --> 25:18.470 the requirements for their corps, 25:18.470 --> 25:20.673 they need to run about four courses a year. 25:20.750 --> 25:22.200 They don't have the capacity to do that 25:22.200 --> 25:23.490 but they're working on it. 25:23.490 --> 25:24.550 They're talking about bringing 25:24.550 --> 25:27.600 in other African partners to serve as instructors 25:27.900 --> 25:31.090 so it will truly become an international course. 25:31.090 --> 25:34.743 So again, great work you did with the academy. 25:34.910 --> 25:38.193 Sir, do you have any or anybody have any questions or? 25:39.674 --> 25:42.010 - I'd like to highlight, you know so what you see 25:42.010 --> 25:45.320 with the Malawi Sergeant Majors Academy 25:45.320 --> 25:48.233 is defense institution building. 25:48.410 --> 25:50.983 So our African partners have the desire. 25:51.030 --> 25:53.963 They don't necessarily have the capacity. 25:54.210 --> 25:57.963 That's where U.S. Army Africa and AFRICOM comes in. 25:58.170 --> 26:01.463 That's where our regionally aligned forces come in. 26:01.660 --> 26:03.870 They help our African partners develop 26:03.870 --> 26:06.173 their own internal capacity, 26:06.180 --> 26:08.350 and then expand it beyond their own country. 26:08.350 --> 26:10.480 So the Malawi Sergeant Majors Academy 26:10.480 --> 26:12.643 is a regional training institution. 26:12.760 --> 26:14.090 You heard Warrant Officer Bisalomu 26:14.090 --> 26:15.430 talked about other countries 26:15.430 --> 26:18.593 are sending 'em there, 240 graduates. 26:19.160 --> 26:22.233 We do the same thing with intelligence training. 26:22.250 --> 26:25.630 We do the same thing with counter-IED training. 26:25.630 --> 26:27.990 So our African partners are developing 26:27.990 --> 26:30.633 African solutions to their own problems, 26:30.950 --> 26:34.230 and building internal capacity 26:34.330 --> 26:37.470 that they export to the countries around 'em. 26:37.470 --> 26:41.240 So in the long run, our partners that we're training now 26:41.240 --> 26:45.763 are becoming regional exporters of stability and security. 26:45.770 --> 26:47.000 That's critically important. 26:47.000 --> 26:49.180 Then, the other thing I'll say 26:49.450 --> 26:52.540 is for regionally aligned forces, 26:52.540 --> 26:55.480 2nd Brigade of the 101st is now our RAF brigade. 26:55.480 --> 26:56.313 It's aligned with Africa. 26:56.313 --> 26:58.450 We also have a lot of engineer forces 26:58.700 --> 27:00.010 that are aligned with us. 27:00.010 --> 27:01.530 Deployments to Africa are 27:01.640 --> 27:03.693 for unique opportunities for training. 27:04.320 --> 27:07.380 They offer training for deployment, 27:07.380 --> 27:10.533 for employing your forces in an austere environment. 27:10.880 --> 27:12.940 Deployments to Africa is part of the RAF 27:12.940 --> 27:15.283 or it's part of building partner capacity, 27:15.500 --> 27:18.440 build readiness internal to your organization, 27:18.440 --> 27:21.563 and that supports what the chief is after, 27:21.760 --> 27:24.610 is maintaining readiness within the brigade combat teams. 27:24.930 --> 27:27.320 So that's just an example of 27:27.560 --> 27:30.370 one thing that's occurring on the African continent. 27:30.370 --> 27:32.840 Remember Africa is three and a half times 27:32.840 --> 27:34.960 the size of the continental United States. 27:34.960 --> 27:37.760 We've got huge distances that have to be covered. 27:37.760 --> 27:39.510 We've got a lot of willing partners 27:39.540 --> 27:40.670 that want to partner with us. 27:40.670 --> 27:44.193 So it's a great place to train, to work, 27:44.350 --> 27:45.780 and to get after the mission. 27:45.780 --> 27:48.770 So pending anything from you, sergeant major, 27:48.770 --> 27:50.370 we'll turn it over to questions. 27:55.230 --> 27:56.063 Any questions? 27:56.730 --> 27:57.563 Sir. 28:02.630 --> 28:04.963 - Thank you so much for the presentations. 28:05.100 --> 28:08.773 Very insightful, and informative. 28:09.870 --> 28:14.827 But I want you to share with me 28:16.480 --> 28:21.480 how you conduct your training in the academy. 28:24.890 --> 28:29.423 I'm asking this because in 2016, 28:30.000 --> 28:35.000 I visited US Army Africa headquarters in Italy, 28:36.120 --> 28:38.883 and from there, Germany, 28:39.610 --> 28:41.493 some facilities in Germany. 28:43.180 --> 28:45.470 When I was there, I had an opportunity 28:45.470 --> 28:50.470 to visit U.S. 7th Army NCO Academy. 28:53.730 --> 28:58.090 When I was there, I found that there was this 28:59.130 --> 29:02.540 sergeant major who was sort of the commandant 29:02.810 --> 29:04.563 in charge of the training. 29:05.480 --> 29:07.420 But sometimes in Africa, you find that 29:08.259 --> 29:12.543 the training of NCOs and the training of enlisted soldiers, 29:12.770 --> 29:15.210 there are officers, there's too much involvement 29:15.210 --> 29:16.803 of the officers in there. 29:17.200 --> 29:22.200 So I want you to share with me the model you used, 29:22.870 --> 29:24.940 which we'll find it very beneficial 29:25.090 --> 29:28.720 to get the best out of the training of your NCOs. 29:31.090 --> 29:35.110 Secondly, to share with me 29:35.110 --> 29:38.170 the selection of a good sergeant major. 29:38.170 --> 29:40.143 How do you select your sergeant majors? 29:40.400 --> 29:41.233 Thank you. 29:45.210 --> 29:46.290 - Sir, thank you for your question. 29:46.290 --> 29:47.173 I appreciate it. 29:47.560 --> 29:49.630 The only reason our NCO corp is strong 29:49.630 --> 29:51.143 is because of our officers. 29:51.230 --> 29:53.100 They empower us to do stuff. 29:53.100 --> 29:54.590 They're the ones who write policy, 29:54.590 --> 29:57.650 and help us move, and to build schools and academies 29:57.650 --> 29:59.873 based off your needs and requirements. 29:59.980 --> 30:01.700 So thanks to all officers in the audience 30:01.700 --> 30:03.650 for empowering the NCOs, appreciate it. 30:04.350 --> 30:06.130 So how did the academy begin? 30:06.130 --> 30:08.230 So one of his sergeant majors attended 30:08.500 --> 30:10.400 the U.S. Army Sergeant Majors Academy 30:11.030 --> 30:12.293 at Fort Bliss, Texas. 30:12.630 --> 30:15.447 Came back to the country, worked with his officers 30:15.447 --> 30:17.217 and their leadership, and said 30:17.217 --> 30:20.987 "We need something like this for our enlisted force." 30:21.330 --> 30:22.570 So they contacted us. 30:22.570 --> 30:25.023 We worked through AMEDD, which helps funds, 30:25.200 --> 30:27.243 and they said, Sergeant Major McCarroll, 30:27.690 --> 30:31.510 he flew over to Malawi, sat down with the leadership, 30:31.510 --> 30:34.207 and said, "What do you want your sergeant major 30:34.207 --> 30:35.247 "to look like?" 30:35.800 --> 30:38.320 Gave them some examples, went back, 30:38.320 --> 30:41.463 built the POI, built the curriculum for the studies, 30:41.660 --> 30:44.993 came back to Malawi, was approved by the commandant. 30:45.730 --> 30:49.010 We had a few Americans assist with the first two, 30:49.010 --> 30:52.773 two or three courses of instruction and development, 30:52.980 --> 30:55.863 and adjusted the POI to better fit their needs. 30:56.340 --> 30:59.380 Now, I think the third or fourth class, 30:59.380 --> 31:02.063 it was just the Malawians teaching the course. 31:02.650 --> 31:05.320 So it takes a few years 31:05.800 --> 31:09.783 but if you need us to help you do something with an NCOs, 31:09.840 --> 31:12.200 we can work with your state partnership 31:13.460 --> 31:15.220 or through AFRICOM or U.S. Army 31:15.220 --> 31:17.243 to help you with that capability, sir. 31:17.760 --> 31:18.593 Yes, sir. 31:18.670 --> 31:19.503 Thank you. 31:21.260 --> 31:23.113 He wants you to answer the question too. 31:24.985 --> 31:28.068 (chattering faintly) 31:37.740 --> 31:38.653 - Thank you, sir. 31:38.910 --> 31:42.267 As of now, there is no commandant 31:42.490 --> 31:45.090 but we have a course coordinator. 31:45.090 --> 31:48.823 So course coordinator is commissioned officer lieutenant. 31:49.840 --> 31:54.050 Yes, but I think in the future, 31:54.050 --> 31:58.103 we'll have a commandant because I have said already 31:58.103 --> 32:01.240 that we have several challenges in terms 32:01.240 --> 32:06.080 of NCOs empowerment in the Malawi Defence Force 32:06.080 --> 32:11.080 or in the African countries, defense force of Africa. 32:12.330 --> 32:16.970 I think it's a big challenge for NCOs empowerment. 32:16.970 --> 32:21.067 So we don't do our own senior NCOs 32:21.420 --> 32:25.320 but we have a guide from officers. 32:25.320 --> 32:29.363 So as of now, we have instructors, NCOs, 32:29.527 --> 32:32.270 and officer with the course coordinator. 32:32.270 --> 32:33.103 Thank you, sir. 32:38.250 --> 32:42.520 - General Sekano, you know developing an NCO corp 32:42.520 --> 32:44.853 is not something that occurs overnight. 32:46.470 --> 32:49.410 Sergeant Major Inman has got 30 years in the Army. 32:49.410 --> 32:54.120 So that's 30 years of sequential leadership positions 32:54.120 --> 32:56.760 that he has been in that have developed him 32:56.760 --> 32:59.593 into the sergeant major that he is today. 32:59.680 --> 33:02.660 So developing an NCO corp is not gonna happen tomorrow. 33:02.660 --> 33:06.412 It takes several generations to develop 33:06.412 --> 33:09.480 the backbone of the non-commissioned officer corp 33:09.590 --> 33:10.933 that's gonna run the Army. 33:11.790 --> 33:14.430 One of the things that we have to understand as leaders 33:14.430 --> 33:16.360 is if you're gonna develop junior leaders, 33:16.360 --> 33:19.460 whether they're NCOs or whether they're junior officers, 33:19.460 --> 33:21.487 is you have to empower 'em, 33:21.540 --> 33:25.070 and you have to give them the ability to make mistakes. 33:25.070 --> 33:26.560 They don't have to be perfect. 33:26.560 --> 33:28.010 They have to learn from the mistakes, 33:28.010 --> 33:30.460 and you, as a leader, have to underwrite that 33:30.460 --> 33:31.833 and allow them to grow. 33:32.040 --> 33:34.680 So we have learned in the United States Army 33:35.120 --> 33:36.760 that NCOs are the backbone. 33:36.760 --> 33:38.163 We say that all the time. 33:38.540 --> 33:41.660 But by empowering our non-commissioned officers 33:41.830 --> 33:45.683 as officers, it frees us up to do other things. 33:45.890 --> 33:47.640 They run the day-to-day operations, 33:47.640 --> 33:48.870 and they make everything happen. 33:48.870 --> 33:51.480 So it's gotta be a deliberate commitment 33:51.570 --> 33:54.773 and a deliberate decision to building that NCO corp. 34:00.030 --> 34:00.863 - Yes, sir. 34:03.210 --> 34:06.413 I'm Colonel David Ingeta, Botswana Defence Force. 34:06.880 --> 34:10.130 I think one of the challenges that many countries 34:10.130 --> 34:13.633 are facing in Africa is really managing that culture change. 34:14.670 --> 34:19.110 As he just pointed out that at the NCO academy, 34:19.110 --> 34:21.200 they have an officer being the course coordinator 34:21.200 --> 34:22.173 for the course. 34:22.320 --> 34:23.920 We went through the same problem 34:25.021 --> 34:25.990 in the Botswana Defence Force, 34:25.990 --> 34:29.480 where we used to have officers running NCO courses. 34:29.480 --> 34:32.440 All those officers were clueless really about 34:33.400 --> 34:36.580 functioning as NCOs because they've never been NCOs 34:36.580 --> 34:38.280 but they were trying to teach NCOs 34:38.480 --> 34:39.990 how to function as NCOs. 34:40.940 --> 34:43.163 It took us some time to finally get it. 34:43.250 --> 34:47.840 Nowadays, our NCO courses are completely run 34:48.890 --> 34:51.173 by the NCO course, the corp. 34:52.040 --> 34:55.823 The coordinator is a warrant officer, he's an NCO. 34:56.180 --> 34:58.103 All the instructors are NCOs. 34:58.280 --> 35:01.237 So officers are not really involved in the running 35:02.822 --> 35:04.223 of the NCO curriculum. 35:04.540 --> 35:06.890 So I'm saying all this to say that 35:07.160 --> 35:10.743 we really need to seriously manage that culture change. 35:11.340 --> 35:15.470 So that we start to really view the NCO development 35:15.470 --> 35:16.483 as being critical. 35:16.790 --> 35:20.120 The NCO should be 100% involved in the development 35:20.120 --> 35:21.203 of the NCO corp. 35:21.750 --> 35:24.000 The officers should just provide the support, 35:24.090 --> 35:26.700 provide the resources that NCOs require 35:26.940 --> 35:29.483 in order for them to function effectively. 35:29.960 --> 35:30.960 Thank you very much. 35:32.440 --> 35:33.340 - I agree with ya. 35:33.440 --> 35:35.100 First Sergeant Lewis, do you have any comments. 35:35.100 --> 35:35.933 I mean you're working at 35:35.933 --> 35:38.313 the 10th Mountain Division NCO Academy now, right? 35:43.810 --> 35:45.680 - [Abraham] It starts with the lowest level 35:45.680 --> 35:46.780 which is the sergeant. 35:49.594 --> 35:51.423 NCOs need, like you said sir, 35:51.500 --> 35:53.053 NCOs need to train NCOs. 35:53.160 --> 35:56.080 So we have a commandant, which is our sergeant major, 35:56.080 --> 35:59.403 and then all of our instructors are staff sergeants. 35:59.920 --> 36:01.830 What's unique about the United States Army 36:01.830 --> 36:06.260 is in their NCO development, there is no officers 36:06.540 --> 36:08.763 that are involved in the NCO academy. 36:09.250 --> 36:10.673 It's all NCO driven. 36:11.800 --> 36:16.040 That's important but it took, like the sergeant major said, 36:16.040 --> 36:17.640 it took us a while to get there. 36:17.640 --> 36:21.700 So I was a sergeant way, way back when? 36:21.700 --> 36:24.630 It took years and years to understand 36:24.630 --> 36:26.480 what it means to be a first sergeant. 36:26.790 --> 36:30.253 I have more years to be what it needs to be sergeant major. 36:30.390 --> 36:33.610 So it's very important that you have patience 36:33.610 --> 36:37.223 in the development but like the commander said, 36:38.087 --> 36:39.913 "Give us a little bit of space, 36:39.927 --> 36:41.447 "and we'll surprise you." 36:42.490 --> 36:44.383 - Sure, and just one other comment. 36:45.360 --> 36:48.363 When I came in as a second lieutenant back in 1988, 36:48.690 --> 36:52.100 all of the training I received, coming in the Army, 36:52.100 --> 36:53.530 was done by NCOs. 36:53.530 --> 36:58.210 So NCOs trained me at the infantry officer basic course, 36:58.210 --> 37:00.853 at Airborne School, at Ranger School. 37:01.360 --> 37:04.853 Then when I got to my first unit as a platoon leader, 37:04.860 --> 37:07.480 my platoon sergeant, who was a sergeant first class, 37:07.480 --> 37:10.820 knew that his responsibility was to train me 37:10.820 --> 37:11.973 as a platoon leader. 37:12.010 --> 37:13.863 If I fail, then he fail. 37:13.880 --> 37:16.350 So NCOs not only train NCOs 37:16.480 --> 37:18.033 but they train officers too. 37:23.020 --> 37:23.853 Yes, ma'am. 37:27.780 --> 37:30.310 - [Carla] Thank you, Carla Babb from Voice of America. 37:30.310 --> 37:33.280 I'm gonna be speaking to both of you I believe next week. 37:33.280 --> 37:36.413 So I'll hold off on too many questions for you. 37:37.070 --> 37:38.737 But I just wanna ask you what you thought 37:38.737 --> 37:41.423 was the most difficult thing while you were in Ghana? 37:41.580 --> 37:43.930 I know you didn't have language barrier difficulty. 37:43.930 --> 37:45.180 You didn't have to worry about that. 37:45.180 --> 37:47.710 But there were a lot of things that you were talking about. 37:47.710 --> 37:50.660 If there's one particular thing that you would improve upon 37:51.009 --> 37:54.683 for the next group of guys and gals going, 37:54.800 --> 37:57.890 what you thought would help improve the next group 37:57.890 --> 37:59.093 that works together. 37:59.690 --> 38:01.503 Then for YouTube, really quickly, 38:02.760 --> 38:04.390 what's the biggest takeaway 38:04.390 --> 38:07.710 that you've seen from this officer training 38:07.710 --> 38:09.117 that you've been doing since 2014? 38:09.117 --> 38:10.820 Do you have any success stories, 38:10.820 --> 38:14.010 where you can say this one individual soldier 38:14.010 --> 38:16.993 has really been able to grow from learning this? 38:17.650 --> 38:20.603 Then for you, if I can ask, where, 38:21.224 --> 38:23.740 United States has soldiers all over Africa, 38:23.740 --> 38:26.210 where is the biggest concentrations currently 38:26.450 --> 38:28.263 of your men and women? 38:36.160 --> 38:37.883 - So to your question, ma'am, 38:38.650 --> 38:40.530 the one thing that we actually took 38:41.020 --> 38:42.170 ARs are very important, 38:42.250 --> 38:44.410 and one thing that we took away from the group 38:44.410 --> 38:47.573 that went before us was more participation. 38:47.680 --> 38:49.260 The group before us kind of went in, 38:49.260 --> 38:50.760 and what, did the wrong thing, 38:50.860 --> 38:53.853 and it kinda turned a sour eye with the Ghanaian Army. 38:54.110 --> 38:55.680 So what we did is we went in, 38:55.680 --> 38:58.690 and instead of worrying about training 38:58.780 --> 39:00.363 our soldiers in readiness, 39:00.600 --> 39:03.060 we had already knocked that out of the park before, 39:03.060 --> 39:05.693 so it was more of a focus on joint training, 39:05.920 --> 39:07.973 and getting the partnership built. 39:08.270 --> 39:09.420 That's what I would say 39:09.430 --> 39:10.740 is probably the most important thing 39:10.740 --> 39:12.540 for the next group going in as well, 39:12.600 --> 39:15.163 is get everything done beforehand, 39:15.380 --> 39:17.160 and then just worry about partnering 39:17.160 --> 39:21.653 with that African country, whoever it may be, 39:21.760 --> 39:23.883 to give them the best product possible. 39:26.730 --> 39:27.790 - Thank you very much. 39:27.790 --> 39:29.010 Our successes of 39:29.260 --> 39:31.510 Malawi Defence Force Sergeant Majors Academy, 39:32.010 --> 39:35.680 some of them are the ones who leave the troops 39:35.680 --> 39:38.240 as well we have that Malawi Defence Force 39:38.660 --> 39:42.540 deployed 850 troops to DRC Force 39:42.540 --> 39:44.913 for Force Intervention Brigade. 39:45.260 --> 39:49.333 So some of these NCOs, who lead the troops there, 39:49.470 --> 39:51.780 are the graduates from Sergeant Majors Academy. 39:51.780 --> 39:55.420 So that's the success of Sergeant Majors Academy 39:55.660 --> 39:56.760 for Malawi, thank you. 39:59.370 --> 40:01.790 - Ma'am, I'd say that part of the biggest concentration 40:01.790 --> 40:04.790 would be our security force operating in the Horn of Africa. 40:08.400 --> 40:10.250 - Okay, I think we're out of time. 40:10.250 --> 40:13.200 I'll just finish off by saying thanks everybody for coming. 40:13.290 --> 40:15.340 Just one thing that was taught to me 40:15.340 --> 40:16.840 when I first came in the Army, 40:16.860 --> 40:19.933 that one of the things we have to do, General Sekano, 40:19.990 --> 40:21.543 is to change culture. 40:21.720 --> 40:24.320 We gotta change the culture of the officer corp too. 40:24.590 --> 40:27.200 Officers have to learn to trust and depend 40:27.200 --> 40:28.640 on our non-commissioned officers. 40:28.640 --> 40:31.313 As soon as we do that, and we empower them, 40:31.380 --> 40:32.980 you'll start to see that change. 40:33.630 --> 40:35.050 In the United States Army, 40:35.050 --> 40:37.293 every officer has a sergeant. 40:37.530 --> 40:39.780 If you're a platoon leader, or a company commander, 40:39.780 --> 40:43.283 or a battalion commander, you have a sergeant, a wingman. 40:43.320 --> 40:46.263 My wingman, my sergeant is Command Sergeant Major Inman. 40:46.300 --> 40:48.483 He is responsible for keeping me straight. 40:48.500 --> 40:51.233 So I think, culturally, over time, 40:51.270 --> 40:54.570 we need to learn to empower our NCO corp, 40:54.570 --> 40:57.403 trust our NCOs, give them the resources, 40:57.410 --> 40:59.963 give 'em the mission, and then get out of the way. 41:00.310 --> 41:03.110 I think you'll be surprised at what they can accomplish. 41:03.590 --> 41:04.423 So thanks everybody. 41:04.423 --> 41:06.220 We appreciate you guys coming, cool. 41:06.667 --> 41:07.836 (audience applauding)