Mr Vice-President
Excellencies
Officers and members of the RSLAF
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen:

Today is a historic day in the annals of the RSLAF. It is also an occasion that should attract the attention of everyone who cares about the competence of the men and women who have volunteered to take up the onerous task of defending the safety and territorial integrity of the State of Sierra Leone. As Commander-in-Chief, and also in my capacity as Minister of Defence, I take great pride in welcoming you to the formal opening of the first armed forces staff academy in the nation. Indeed, it could be described as our first institution of higher learning in military affairs. We are today taking another major step towards our objective of establishing armed forces that will, in the near future, rank among the best in West Africa.

Let me take this opportunity to reiterate that the cornerstone of Government's security policy remains the creation of a truly professional military force, a force that will at all times be aware of its constitutional responsibility, and a force that is totally answerable to the people.

Consistent with this policy, we are in the process of progressively and systematically restructuring the army, to ensure that it is equipped with capable well-trained, dedicated and loyal men and women. And speaking of loyalty and dedication, we are also taking measures to ensure that the old concept that matters relating to the military should not be divulged to the public should be a matter of the past. Like in all other activities of Government, we shall maintain transparency and accountability in matters relating to the military as well. It is a matter of common sense that the people whom the army is intended to serve should know how the army functions and the army should be answerable to them if indeed it is to perform its constitutional role of guarding and securing the country and preserving the safety and territorial integrity of the State. We shall no longer allow the maintenance of secrecy about the activities of the military to be used as a device to cover up corruption and other undesirable practices, which previously plagued the military.

Thus, we have put in place a transparent procedure to facilitate accountability in the army. Indeed the Ministry of Defence has recently published the Defence Policy on Sierra Leone so that the public would know how matters relating to the defence of this nation would be conducted henceforth. This is an unprecedented move in the history of this country, but it is a move that is bound to be beneficial both for the military and the nation.

The policy is also aimed at ensuring that the military is subject to civilian control as required by the Constitution and as it should be in a democracy. To this effect, the Defence Council, which comprises key civilian members, determines policies affecting the military. The strength of a national defence force lies not only in the number and sophistication of its military hardware - its weapons and equipment - but also on the professional capability and competence of its rank and file, especially those entrusted with command and leadership responsibilities. In this connection, as Commander-in-Chief, I reinforced Government's armed forces career development policy by instructing that every officer from the rank of Lieutenant Colonel should be interviewed individually in order to ascertain their career goals, and discuss how they hoped, with the help of the military, to achieve those goals. A similar exercise was conducted for other tanks. The idea was to have a frank exchange of views that could help Government in delineating a more transparent career path for all its military personnel. At the same time the exercise was intended to build confidence among military personnel and assure them that there is genuine desire on the part of the Government to care for and attend to their individual career prospects on an individual basis, and to provide them with an avenue for attaining their aspirations.

The welfare of the military is another matter of great concern to the Government. It is for this reason that we are placing top priority on Operation PEBU so that suitable accommodation facilities can be provided for housing the military.

In sum, Government is desirous that this nation is provided with a modern army of disciplined and contented people whose loyalty is to the nation and who are properly equipped to serve this nation. This requirement therefore calls for the appointment of men and women with the appropriate attitude and disposition, and with the required training, academic qualification and relevant professional experience befitting the positions they hold. Such requirement should go side by side with the need for loyalty which every soldier is required to display at all times.

It is against this background that we are here today to mark another phase in the restructuring of our armed forces, namely the establishment of a new professional institution for the national security and stability of Sierra Leone. There is the need for an appropriate educational institution that will enable the Officer to improve his or her leadership capabilities, and apply them to the vision and good of the nation. These are some of the factors that the Defence Council takes into account in considering candidates for promotions to higher ranks in the army. The Government has therefore consistently laid emphasis on merit as the only criterion deserving consideration in the army. I should add here that political or tribal connections or affiliation are not and will not be considered in the recruitment and promotion of members of the armed forces. Taking into account such irrelevant matters in dealing with the military was the main cause for the destruction of the military we inherited at independence. We cannot afford to go that way again.

What we are launching today is an institution where our men and women in the army can acquire relevant educational training and skills that would enhance their professionalism and prepare them for promotion to higher ranks and the assumption of greater responsibility in the armed forces.

This Academy has been created to meet the growing need to provide continuous training for officers of the RSLAF throughout their career. It is the Officers who are charged with the challenging task of transforming the RSLAF into a modern and highly capable force. The various courses at the Academy will aim to expand the ability of the Officer Corps to carry this out. These courses taught by the Directing Staff, will address a diverse range of issues and will attract resource persons and students from across the sub-region. These resource persons will include speakers from Government, academic professionals, competent media practitioners and qualified individuals from civil society. The RSLAF is the guardian of the nation's security and so of its progress. The Commissioned Officers, who serve in it, are in turn, the guardians of our Armed Forces. The Academy is an investment in the future of the Officer Corps. In the final analysis it is an invaluable investment in the future of our country.

In searching for an appropriate name for this new institution of higher military education, we found inspiration in the legacy of Sierra Leone as a source of enlightenment in West Africa. We also found inspiration in the life of a son of the soil, a nationalist and visionary who among other things persuaded the Colonial Government to establish a system of educating African surgeons for the Army in West Africa, and the institution of a Medical School in Sierra Leone. Lieutenant Colonel James 'Africanus' Horton was born a few miles from here, this mountain district, in the village of Gloucester in 1835. The son of a carpenter, he worked hard to achieve his education. After attending what was later to become Fourah Bay College he received a scholarship to study medicine in King's College, London. Africanus Horton was subsequently one of the first Africans to qualify as a medical doctor. He joined the British Army Medical Service, as one of the first to serve as an officer in the British Army. Not content with being a doctor, army officer and a scientist in the study of tropical diseases he went on to publish a number of books setting out the guidelines for independence for West African states. His dreams of political independence would not however be realised for almost a century. He died following his return to Freetown in 1883.

Even in death his commitment to learning prevailed as most of his estate was left to fund scientific education in what was the Sierra Leone Training School. He has become an icon of excellence, professionalism, resourcefulness and patriotism. We must also learn from the example of Lieutenant Colonel 'Africanus' Horton that by serving our country well and promoting its good name we can be remembered with love and esteem even long after our death. It is in this vein that we are today immortalising the memory of Lieutenant Colonel Horton.

The institution we are about to open should stand as a driving symbol of those qualities, qualities which we hope all who pass through these walls, will strive to attain.

In tribute to the memory of that I have the honour and privilege of declaring officially open and naming this institution of military higher education, the Africanus Horton Armed Forces Academy (AHAFA).

I thank you.