U.S. Africa Command conducts 2022 CHOD Conference

U.S. Africa Command hosted African Chiefs of Defense and senior military leaders from 36 countries for the 2022 African Chiefs of Defense Conference: Shared Investment for a Shared Future, in Rome, Jan. 31 – Feb. 3, 2022



By U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs United States Africa Command Stuttgart, Germany Feb 03, 2022
View Gallery
fallback
Gallery contains 2 images

U.S. Africa Command hosted African Chiefs of Defense and senior military leaders from 36 countries for the 2022 African Chiefs of Defense Conference: Shared Investment for a Shared Future, in Rome, Jan. 31 – Feb. 3, 2022

The conference provided an opportunity to enhance relationships, encourage partnerships and discuss shared visions for the future of multinational coordination, operations and interoperability in Africa.

"Our partnership with the nations in Africa is a partnership of friends, working together to address mutual security challenges and also to enable progress on political and development challenges as well," said U.S. Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander, U.S. Africa Command.

Townsend chaired the event, which is the first in-person CHOD conference since 2017. Last year, the command hosted a virtual conference from Stuttgart, Germany. Townsend was joined by Amb. Andrew Young, deputy to the commander for Civil-Military Engagement, and Sgt. Maj. Richard Thresher, command senior enlisted leader.

The conference discussions included five overarching panels: crisis preparation, response, and recovery; threats to security and rule of law; protecting resources; effects of technology; and interoperability. Attendees also heard a keynote address from Fauziya Abdi Ali, president of Women in International Security, Horn of Africa, as well as remarks from U.S. Navy Adm. Christopher Grady, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

"The conference has a huge impact on my military, particularly because it allows me to get to interact at a very highest level, one with the African nations whom I don't get to meet," Gen. Robert Kibochi, Chief of Defence Forces, Kenya. "Secondly, to interact with the partners that have been working with us." 

At the end of the conference, Townsend noted the importance of candid discussions among senior military partners to help better address global issues that no one nation can solve alone.   He also shared his concerns about the recent spate of unconstitutional, military-led changes of government.

“One of the greatest threats to the rule of law in a democracy is the scourge of corruption, but the overthrow of elected leaders only deepens the problem,” said Townsend.   “These military seizures of power are inconsistent with democratic values and as professional military members, it is important that we stay out of politics so that we can remain a part of the solution.”

More in Partnerships
Winning the Peace through Religious Collaboration
U.S. chaplain delegation led by U.S. Africa Command Chaplain Colonel Karen Meeker conducted collaborative meetings to bring stability through faith and new avenues of collaboration in support of the warfighter while in Cairo, Egypt, March 17, 2025.
Read more
General Langley Engages with Leaders in Côte d’Ivoire
U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Michael Langley, commander of U.S. Africa Command, traveled to Côte d’Ivoire, April 24-25, to meet with Ivorian leaders and deliver remarks at the opening ceremony of Flintlock 25, the command's annual combined special operations exercise.
Read more
Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord
NAIROBI, Kenya – Among the flurry of tactical live fires and squad movement drills, air ground integration and even the humanitarian initiatives at exercise Justified Accord 2025 (JA25), lies the one thing those who serve in any armed force must follow: The Law. The Law of Armed Conflict, or LOAC, is a key aspect of training for any military. JA25’s academics course aimed at learning from the international legal lessons of previous wars in an effort to reduce the amount of human suffering in future conflicts. “The soldier’s rules are a broad set of rules that we have pulled from the large breadth of international law,” said U.S. Army Maj. Tim Olliges, an operational law attorney assigned to U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa (SETAF-AF), the lead U.S. Army command and planner of JA25. “The LOAC is extensive and can be complex, so we pull out the ten most critical concepts that every soldier, right down to the private, should know before they go into combat.”
Read more
More in Partnerships
Winning the Peace through Religious Collaboration
U.S. chaplain delegation led by U.S. Africa Command Chaplain Colonel Karen Meeker conducted collaborative meetings to bring stability through faith and new avenues of collaboration in support of the warfighter while in Cairo, Egypt, March 17, 2025.
Read more
General Langley Engages with Leaders in Côte d’Ivoire
U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Michael Langley, commander of U.S. Africa Command, traveled to Côte d’Ivoire, April 24-25, to meet with Ivorian leaders and deliver remarks at the opening ceremony of Flintlock 25, the command's annual combined special operations exercise.
Read more
Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord
NAIROBI, Kenya – Among the flurry of tactical live fires and squad movement drills, air ground integration and even the humanitarian initiatives at exercise Justified Accord 2025 (JA25), lies the one thing those who serve in any armed force must follow: The Law. The Law of Armed Conflict, or LOAC, is a key aspect of training for any military. JA25’s academics course aimed at learning from the international legal lessons of previous wars in an effort to reduce the amount of human suffering in future conflicts. “The soldier’s rules are a broad set of rules that we have pulled from the large breadth of international law,” said U.S. Army Maj. Tim Olliges, an operational law attorney assigned to U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa (SETAF-AF), the lead U.S. Army command and planner of JA25. “The LOAC is extensive and can be complex, so we pull out the ten most critical concepts that every soldier, right down to the private, should know before they go into combat.”
Read more
More in Partnerships
Winning the Peace through Religious Collaboration
U.S. chaplain delegation led by U.S. Africa Command Chaplain Colonel Karen Meeker conducted collaborative meetings to bring stability through faith and new avenues of collaboration in support of the warfighter while in Cairo, Egypt, March 17, 2025.
Read more
General Langley Engages with Leaders in Côte d’Ivoire
U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Michael Langley, commander of U.S. Africa Command, traveled to Côte d’Ivoire, April 24-25, to meet with Ivorian leaders and deliver remarks at the opening ceremony of Flintlock 25, the command's annual combined special operations exercise.
Read more
Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord
NAIROBI, Kenya – Among the flurry of tactical live fires and squad movement drills, air ground integration and even the humanitarian initiatives at exercise Justified Accord 2025 (JA25), lies the one thing those who serve in any armed force must follow: The Law. The Law of Armed Conflict, or LOAC, is a key aspect of training for any military. JA25’s academics course aimed at learning from the international legal lessons of previous wars in an effort to reduce the amount of human suffering in future conflicts. “The soldier’s rules are a broad set of rules that we have pulled from the large breadth of international law,” said U.S. Army Maj. Tim Olliges, an operational law attorney assigned to U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa (SETAF-AF), the lead U.S. Army command and planner of JA25. “The LOAC is extensive and can be complex, so we pull out the ten most critical concepts that every soldier, right down to the private, should know before they go into combat.”
Read more