FREETOWN, Sierra Leone – Subject matter experts from the Michigan Army and Air National Guard visited Sierra Leone Nov. 14-23 to begin developing their State Partnership Program relationship with the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces.
The Michigan specialists engaged with their RSLAF counterparts to assess and plan the priority areas of noncommissioned officer development, military justice and vehicle operations.
“We are moving very rapidly to roll out the SPP with Sierra Leone as part of Michigan’s commitment to building value-added relationships with our partners,” said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Scott House, SPP executive integrator for the MING. “Presence matters with the SPP, and our Soldiers and Airmen are investing time with our RSLAF partners to shape long-term engagements that will continue for years and perhaps decades to come.”
The MING signed an SPP agreement with Sierra Leone Sept. 12 and has two other partners in the program: the Republic of Latvia since 1993 and the Republic of Liberia since 2009.
Two legal officers from the Armed Forces of Liberia also traveled to Freetown during the engagements this month to participate in trilateral discussions with the Michigan National Guard and Sierra Leone.
“We are excited about the SPP with the Michigan National Guard and the opportunity it brings to strengthen security in coastal West Africa,” said RSLAF Maj. Gen. A.I. Bangura, chief of defense staff. “This partnership is just getting started, and we look forward to many more fruitful exchanges in the near future.”
The visiting Michigan personnel spent time familiarizing themselves with Sierra Leone’s culture and history, visiting the Sierra Leone National Museum.
The SPP supports U.S. State Department and Department of Defense objectives by linking the National Guard of a U.S. state with the armed forces of a sovereign partner nation for mutually beneficial security cooperation. The SPP began in 1993 with 13 partners and has grown to include 105 partnerships with 115 nations.