DLA hosts steering group’s inaugural meeting on procurement in Africa

Photo By Teodora Mocanu | Attendees from the interagency Executive Leaders Steering Group participate in an Aug. 1 meeting on procurement in Africa via video teleconference at the McNamara Headquarters Complex. (Photo by Teodora Mocanu)  

FORT BELVOIR, VA, UNITED STATES

08.01.2014

Story by Amanda Neumann 

Defense Logistics Agency   

FORT BELVOIR, Va. - Defense Logistics Agency senior leaders and government representatives from the interagency Executive Leaders Steering Group discussed procurement in Africa Aug. 1 at the McNamara Headquarters Complex.

The meeting, co-chaired by DLA Vice Director Ted Case and Air Force Brig. Gen. James Johnson, director for logistics at U.S. Africa Command, was the group’s first quarterly discussion on the U.S. government’s desire to promote local procurement in Africa.

The attendees included senior officials with DLA, USAFRICOM, the State Department, the General Services Administration, the Office of the Secretary of Defense for Policy, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, both in person and over video teleconference.

Case said DLA learned many lessons from its procurement experience in U.S. Central Command’s area of responsibility and the agency hopes to carry those lessons into Africa.

“We’d like to take the best things that we did in CENTCOM and move them over,” he said. “But the AFRICOM situation is different, so we have to identify those differences and see if there is some way we can make up for them. Probably the biggest issue we’re going to have is not that we don’t have money. It’s what can we buy with the money that we have. Many of the things that we did in the CENTCOM AOR, we will try to reproduce in the AFRICOM AOR. One of the biggest things [DLA Director Navy Vice Adm. Mark Harnitchek] is interested in is identifying the impediment as quickly as possible, … so that we can start being able to buy things as quickly as possible.”

Although the endeavor into Africa presents many logistical challenges, with DLA’s assistance, the economic initiative can be a positive one that will benefit all involved, Johnson said.

“Our AOR in Africa has its challenges and opportunities like others,” he said. “There are things that I think we’ll be able to benefit from [with] all of your experiences in Afghanistan. Having spent some time there as well, there are some unique challenges in Africa that are different, that will require innovation, and some concepts that haven’t been tried in other places. And that’s why we’re really excited about DLA’s partnership, because we believe that the leadership at DLA has that perspective and is willing to innovate and try new things that will benefit us all.”

Planned topics of discussion for the half-day meeting included overarching support requirements, the importance of local procurement initiatives and expeditionary contracting business models for Africa. In addition, a charter outlining the framework of the steering group’s initiatives was presented and discussed.

• Date Taken: 08.01.2014
• Date Posted: 08.07.2014 14:54
• Story ID: 138617
• Location: FORT BELVOIR, VA, US