AMISOM
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Press Release
Mombasa, Kenya -The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) in collaboration with its partners has today started a meeting on information sharing in Mombasa, Kenya. The objective of the meeting is to set in motion and sustain a process of regular exchange of information and intelligence between AMISOM, the Somali security agencies and all relevant regional and continental structures.
The three-day meeting will be attended by the Somali National Security Agencies (Army, Police and National Intelligence Agency); the troops and police contributing countries; representatives from Ethiopia, South Sudan, Mali, Chad, IGAD, the African Union , the African Center for the Research and Study on Terrorism (ACRST) and the Center for Intelligence and Security Services in Africa (CISSA).
Speaking during the opening ceremony, the AU Special Representative for Somalia-Ambassador Mahamat Saleh Annadif reminded the participants that the acts perpetrated by terrorists have no boundaries. Therefore the fight against terrorism must be well coordinated.
“After suffering major setbacks, Al-shabaab has now adopted the method of asymmetric warfare. The right way to deal with this new threat is the mastering of information in terms of intelligence gathering. And I am confident that this meeting will help you in identifying the proper mechanisms for information gathering and information sharing,” said Ambassador Annadif.
The meeting which is a platform for information exchange, is expected to produce the following results: (i) a better appreciation of the current situation in Somalia, a country facing serious security challenges linked to terrorism, organized crimes and the proliferation of weapons; (ii) the strengthening of the Mission’s relevant structures as well as those in the region to exchange information and intelligence; (iii) the elaboration of modalities for enhanced cooperation among all actors, including production of alerts, briefs and assessments on the prevailing situation; and (iv) the identification of practical steps to enhance the capacity of the National Security and Intelligence Agency (NISA), Somalia National Police (SNP) and Somalia National Army (SNA) to collect, analyze and respond to threats.
Source: AMISOM