Article by Major Merle Meyer, SA Army Corporate Communication
Photographs by Staff Sergeant Chené Kruger, SA Army Corporate Communication

On Friday, 21 September 2012, the Chief of the South African Army, Lieutenant General Vusi Masondo, met fellow colleagues from Africa at a function presented at the SA Army College. The guests included representatives from Angola, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Malawi. The guests attended the African Aerospace and Defence 2012 Expo at the Air Force Base Waterkloof.

Lieutenant General Masondo welcomed the guests and said the exhibition was not only an opportunity to see the latest military equipment, but also to reflect on the relationship with other armies in the endevour to bring peace to Africa. The South African Army, like its neighbours’ armies, has been able to comply with the requirements for deployment despite having old equipment that is frequently in need of repair due to the economic difficulties.

Lieutenant General Masondo said that it was gratifying to hear that the recommendations of the Defence Review that the South African Army be re-equipped had been approved and that those projects would be implemented in the near future. He also mentioned that the approval of the airborne capabilities would enable the South African Army to deploy soldiers more rapidly and in hostile terrains where they can be more manoeuverable. Support equipment such as water purification and field workshops would also support and sustain the soldiers in the field, and if necessary, support the communities in war torn areas.

The South African Army had the opportunity to benchmark its doctrine and learn new skills as the South African Army trained members from other African countries and South African Army soldiers received training in their countries. This enabled the South African Army to employ best practices and deploy more effectively together as part of the African Standby Brigade in joint exercises and operations.

A visitor from Zimbabwe and Brigadier General Dibetso and Brigadier General Hadebe	Gen Lucia Goncalves do Amaral from Angola presenting a copy of their military journal to Major General Masondo

Major General L. Yam, General Officer Commanding SA Army Infantry Formation arriving for the function	Chief of the SA Army, members of the SA Army Command Cadre and some of the guests