Army restructuring begins

The first phase of the restructuring of Liberia’s national army began on Monday as officers responsible for determining the current strength of the army began their training, news organisations reported.

The Liberian News Agency reported the chairman of the armed forces restructuring commission, Blamo Nelson, as saying that the ongoing restructuring exercise would include four phases, re-documentation, demobilisation, retirement and recruitment, aimed at establishing “a small, effective and efficient army”.

The newly started redocumentation exercise will establish who is in the army, including details such as date of birth and date of employment, the news agency added. The redocumentation will be followed by the retirement and discharge of all ineligible personnel and the recruitment of those who will form part of the new army, AFP said.