Aneliese Bernard is the Founder and Director of Strategic Stabilization Advisors (SSA), a Washington, D.C.–based consulting firm with operations across West Africa. She brings over a decade of experience in counterterrorism, stabilization, and security sector reform,...
Greetings, Last month, US soldiers deployed to Cameroon and Spirit of America finished building a primary school in a rural northern Cameroon village. The soldiers identified to Spirit of America the need to rebuild a dilapidated primary school located within a mile...
On Monday (September 30) a US military base in Somalia was attacked by al Shabaab (news reports here and here). Al Shabaab militants attacked with a car bomb followed by ground forces in an attempt to breach and storm the US base. The attack was successfully repelled...
Greetings, Al Shabaab is a US-designated terrorist organization affiliated with Al Qaeda based in Somalia. They aim to establish a fundamentalist Islamic state in Somalia, which they hope will ultimately expand to encompass the whole Horn of Africa. Al Shabaab has...
I am writing you today to ask for your assistance feeding 800 people in the village of Sabiid, Somalia. The Somali Army, with advice and assistance from US Special Operations Forces, recently liberated Sabiid from the al Qaeda-aligned terrorist group al Shabaab. As...
Greetings, This is the story of Cynthia, a remarkable young woman from Gabon, Africa, who is being helped by American soldiers and Spirit of America. Cynthia is a member of the eco-guards, a special type of Park Ranger responsible for protecting the national parks and...
Dear supporters, In the face of violent extremist organizations like al Shabaab and ISIS, our troops have made significant progress in helping local partners take back ground held by these terrorist groups in Somalia. One of the biggest threats to US troops in the...
Bonjour from Niger! I am on the tail end of a multi-week trip, following up on several SoA projects and getting the ball rolling on a few new initiatives. On these trips, I am always amazed by how hard our deployed US service members work despite harsh and austere...
Dear supporters, As you read this, SoA Project Manager Nick Glasgow is en route to Northern Niger to provide support for the Cure Salée (Salt Treatment) festival. The annual celebration of the end of the rainy season, hosts nomadic ethnic groups such as the Tuareg,...
