Jan 12, 2009 7:48 AM

Help Wanted: 'Human Terrain' Teams for Africa

The Army’s Human Terrain System, which employs anthropologists social scientists in Iraq and Afghanistan, and has seen no shortage of controversy. Three of its social scientists have been killed; one human terrain contractor faces a murder charge; another was indicted for espionage. Now it looks like the human terrain teams — or something very much […]

The Army's Human Terrain System, which employs anthropologists social scientists in Iraq and Afghanistan, and has seen no shortage of controversy. Three of its social scientists have been killed; one human terrain contractor faces a murder charge; another was indicted for espionage.

Now it looks like the human terrain teams -- or something very much like them -- are coming to Africa. Research and risk management firm Archimedes Global, Inc. recently sent out help-wanted ads for a new "socio-cultural cell" within U.S. Africa Command, the new regional military headquarters. Within two months of the contract start, the company will deploy a six-contractor team to eastern Africa.

The job description states:

USAFRICOM requires approximately 24 personnel to support the base effort. On day one of the contract, USAFRICOM requires six (6) contractor personnel to make up the first Socio-Cultural Cell and an additional six (6) contractor personnel will be required to make up the Social Scientist Research Center (SSRC).

According to the job ad, the teams will work support AFRICOM's Special Analysis Branch, which among other things will provide "operational multi-layered analysis and Joint Intelligence Preparations of the Operational Environment." Cells will include personnel with expertise in "human terrain, all-source and Geo-spatial analysis." A second socio-cultural cell will stand up within six months.

It's no secret that AFRICOM is looking to create something similar to the Army's human terrain program, managed by defense contractor BAE Systems. In a speech at the U.K. Royal United Services Institute back in September, Gen. William "Kip" Ward, the head of AFRICOM, said:

A lot of activity goes on in the continent through our non-government organizations. Academia is involved. I showed you early on this thing about knowledge development. When I was in previous assignments, someone came to me and would talk about, well, 'Ward, you need to get a cultural anthropologist on your team.' I said, what! A cultural what? Anthropologist? To do what? Get out of here. Or, 'Ward, you need to have someone to help you understand the human dimension. You need some human terrain analysis.' I said, 'what? Get out of here.' But it's important, and where do those skills, talents reside -- academia, places like RUSI.

Steve Fondacaro and Montgomery McFate, the Army's top human terrain gurus, have said from the beginning that "phase zero" conflicts -- before the shooting wars start -- are the places where social science and anthropology might be the most useful; Fondacaro has visited AFRICOM as a preliminary step towards setting up human terrain teams there. Interestingly, though, the AFRICOM job description is for a "socio-cultural cell," not a human terrain team. Is there some re-branding at work here? Or might the two projects work side-by-side?

[PHOTO: U.S. Department of Defense]

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