The U.S. military's Africa Command (AFRICOM) is building the capacity of partner nations to counter extremist threats, respect civilian control and respond more effectively to humanitarian and security needs across the continent, a senior U.S. Defense Department official told members of Congress.

In testimony before the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee's Subcommittee on Africa July 26, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Vicki Huddleston said AFRICOM, created in October 2008, did not create a competing military force in Africa.

"AFRICOM is on the continent to build the capacity of professional militaries under civilian control," Huddleston said.

Its partnership with 54 African nations is helping those nations to more ably "counter extremism and provide for the security of their citizens and contribute to peacekeeping," she said. Their increased capacity in turn helps them provide "a secure environment for democracy, governance and development."

Nearly three years after the command's launch, many Africans have had a chance to see AFRICOM at work. For example, in October 2009 around 650 military personnel from Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and host nation Uganda joined U.S. troops for a two-week exercise named Natural Fire 10. The exercise focused on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. Huddleston said the militaries also worked together to build a school and provided humanitarian aid in a health clinic.

Through such exercises Africans can see how AFRICOM is "helping their military not only to improve their skills but to work with [other] militaries in the region," she said.

Africans also have been able to see AFRICOM's training of the Liberian army and the training of a Democratic Republic of the Congo battalion in Kisangani, which has now been deployed to protect civilians in a region where the Lord's Resistance Army is active, Huddleston said.

"By training professional military units that respect civilian control, these militaries become important contributors to stability and respect for the rule of law," she said, while AFRICOM's exercises "provide opportunities to African partners to continue perfecting their professional abilities."

Huddleston said the training includes international standards on human rights, including respect for the rule of law, tolerance and women's rights.

Sharon Cromer, the senior deputy assistant administrator for Africa at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), told the congressional hearing that AFRICOM's efforts to build security, stability and peace are essential to creating an environment conducive to economic growth, poverty reduction and development.

Economic development needs "a professional military that respects human rights and respects good governance and democracy," she said.

"We really cannot proceed with our development intervention in good measure if we don't have peace and security. So what AFRICOM has done on the continent to enhance the professionalism of militaries and support human rights and good governance is absolutely essential to what we do in development," Cromer said.

(This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/iipdigital-en/index.html)