Another great issue of SO. I liked the discussion about AMISOM and their mission in Somalia. There was even a mention of Bancroft Global Development (BGD).
Although what was missing was how instrumental contractors have been to the AMISOM mission. Meaning, contractors are there training and providing logistics to these guys for the fight against Al Shabbab, and you don’t hear much about that contribution.
The other part of the story is that the UN gets very questionable troops from their member nations. Often times, these troops are poorly funded, trained and equipped, and yet they are tasked with conducting very complex operations. The mission in Somalia is not peace keeping either–it is war fighting. So the skills that AMISOM is gaining by working with companies like BGD, are essential to survival and winning on the battlefield. That is what is interesting to me about AMISOM and the recent gains in Somalia. –Matt