Page 72 - The Royal Lancers Chapka 2017

70 REGIMENTAL JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL LANCERS (QUEEN ELIZABETHS’ OWN) AMISOM Mission Support Team
– Mentoring the African Union mission in Somalia
Gunfire, tracer arcing through the night sky, incoming mor- tar rounds, RPGs and helicopters, involved in constant and gruesome exchanges of fire. That is the impression that many of us have of Mogadishu, informed by the films Blackhawk Down and Captain Roberts, and James Ferguson’s book The World’s Most Dangerous Place.
I arrived in Mogadishu in July 2017 and was relieved to find that things have moved on somewhat, although there are still plenty of challenges. Somalia has held first place on Transpar- ency International’s list of most corrupt countries since that list was started; the only serious challenger is Afghanistan. The huge bomb that killed 512 in Mogadishu in October 2017 was not typical, but there are weekly car bombs and almost daily assassinations.
There is some way to go but it is not all bad news. The president elected last year (nicknamed ‘Farmaajo’, an adaption of the Ital- ian for ‘cheese’) is the best that the county has had since 1991. Mogadishu is vibrant and businesses are operating reasonably normally. Many educated members of the diaspora are return- ing to help rebuild the country (and make some cash).
The local brand of terrorist is the al-Qaeda affiliated al-Shabaab. An African Union army, called AMISOM (African Mission in Somalia) maintains security in the key locations around the country. This army consists of 20,000 soldiers drawn from Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Burundi and Djibouti. The Somali National Army is developing but they are not yet capable of tak- ing over from AMISOM, despite enjoying nine months of ener- getic support from Lieutenant Colonel Nick Woolgar.
We, like most international forces and the British Embassy, are based in the Mogadishu International Airport complex (handy if you need to leave in a hurry). It is a surprisingly pleasant base, yards from the Indian Ocean with a very bearable climate.
Kismaayo airport does not have a terminal, just a departure tree
Mission Support Team photo with a difference
My job is to advise the AMISOM Force Commander (a Djibou- tian lieutenant general) and his key staff. I command a team of seven British officers who advise in AMISOM Headquarters. I spend a lot of time with staff officers from the five contributing nations and it is fascinating to see their different approaches. My few words of French and Swahili go a long way. The vast majority are friendly, welcoming and fun to be around. I have a generous budget that I use to train and assist AMISOM, funding conferences, filling small capability gaps with bespoke courses and equipment. Whilst some of my team occasionally feel frus- trated (progress is slow), most are volunteers and they like their work. I have enjoyed my time here and would recommend it as an operational tour that is a welcome change from Afghanistan and Iraq.
DMG
Lieutenant Colonel Goggs with Lieutenant General Soubagleh, AMISOM Force Commander in Addis Ababa