Camp Lemonnier personnel and Djiboutian business and government leaders participated in a Djiboutian business leadership meeting, February 3, 2010.

The event was attended by U.S. Navy Captain William Finn, Camp Lemonnier commanding officer; James Swan, U.S. ambassador to Djibouti; and Mr. Said Omar Moussa, Chamber of Commerce president in Djibouti, along with local business leaders.

"We had the meeting with several senior leaders in the Djiboutian government," said Finn. "We have over 1,200 Djiboutians working here on camp and we are very reliant on their support. Without them the camp wouldn't function."

During the visit, guests were given a tour of Camp Lemonnier and were informed about its future expansion. Mr. Mohamad Ali Hassan, Bilateral Affairs director, believes that the upcoming contracting opportunities at Camp Lemonnier are important.

"We are excited about the upcoming renovations to the camp," said Hassan. "It's going to impact the Djiboutian economy in a positive way because the U.S. government will hire [Djiboutian] contractors and in this way everyone is succeeding."

The idea for a meeting between business leaders and camp personnel started when Camp Lemonnier was first stood up.

"When we signed the Use-of-Land agreement we ensured the Djiboutians that we would do our best to maximize their opportunities in training and development," said Finn. "We're all about service and we should never forget that we provide services for our host, the Djiboutians."

Finn spoke of how he's seen the interactions between Camp Lemonnier and Djibouti grow during his tenure.

"We've had a lot of success in our relationship with our host nation," said Finn. "We have Djiboutians come on camp and sell their crafts, we have tours which are run by Djiboutians, we've set up sporting events between the camp and Djiboutian national teams, and much more."

Camp Lemonnier leadership plans to hold business meetings every three months so that the community and camp relations can progress.

"One of my goals coming in as the commanding officer was to improve the relationship that we had with the host nation," said Finn. "These events are important because the U.S. wouldn't have a camp without Djibouti's support. I want to assure them that we will continue to recognize that."