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U.S. Army Africa's Col. Frances Hardison (left) and Capt. Christian Smith (right) meet with Tanzanian Peoples Defense Force Brig. Gen. Sara Rwambali (center) to discuss an upcoming gender integration seminar. Rwambali is the director of TPFD Social Affairs. TPDF personnel will co-host the seminar that will bring together leading experts in the area of integrating women in the armed forces throughout Africa. (U.S. Army Africa photo.)

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Photo by: Mickie McNamara 

Recently, U.S. Army Africa’s Col. Frances Hardison and Capt. Christian Smith traveled to Dar Es Salaam and Arusha, Tanzania to plan a gender integration seminar co-hosted by the Tanzanian Peoples Defense Forces.

The event is tentatively scheduled for May. During planning, Hardison and Smith discussed the proposed events and activities with the TPDF’s highest ranking female. Hardison is the director of USARAF’s G-1, Personnel.

“I met with Brig. Gen. Sara Rwambali, director of TPDF Social Affairs, and she is very excited to co-host the Gender Mainstreaming Seminar with USARAF in Tanzania in 2015,” said Hardison.

The concept brief to Rwambali and Virginia Blazer, deputy chief of mission, U.S. Embassy Tanzania, detailed the goals of the seminar.

According to Smith, a previous gender integration event has laid the ground work for the May seminar.

“We are capitalizing on the success of last year’s event. The idea remains to bring together various African partner nations to a week-long seminar to discuss best practices, lesson learned and explore ways forward with guest speakers from the United Nations, African Union, Southern African Development Community, East African Community and ECOWAS,” Smith said.

According to Hardison, co-hosting this event with TPDF is appropriate and timely.

“Tanzania has been identified for increased activities in the USARAF area of responsibility and is a key player in EAC, SADC and the continent,” said Hardison.

She said TPDF personnel are eager to be offered the opportunity to co-host the seminar bringing together leading experts in the area of integrating women in the armed forces throughout Africa.

“In the United States we have a great deal of experience with integration. With the opening of new military occupational specialties for women, we continue to move in the right direction. We have a lot to share with our African partners, but also a lot to learn in how they have built and sustained their armies,” Hardison said.

The gender integration initiative supports Executive Order 13595 signed by President Obama and U.N. Security Resolution 1325, which supports engaging partner countries' national security leadership to incorporate a gender perspective and women, peace and security initiatives in their planning and activities while promoting, supporting and encouraging African partners to integrate women into their defense forces.