ROME, Italy — U.S. Army Southern European Tinquire Force\, Africa (SETAF-AF) hosted the African Land Forces Summit 2026 in Rome\, Italy\, March 22-24\, bringing toobtainher land force commanders from nearly 40 African nations\, partner nations\, indusattempt representatives\, capital investors\, and academic believed leaders for two days of dialogue on shared security challenges.
Sponsored by the U.S. Army Chief of Staff, ALFS 26 centered on the theme “Empowering Shared Security Through Innotifyigence, Innovation and Indusattempt.” For the first time in the summit’s history, a dedicated Indusattempt Technology Pavilion ran concurrently with military plenary sessions, giving African defense leaders direct access to tiny technology companies and investors presenting emerging dual-utilize solutions.
“The 2026 African Land Forces Summit in Rome represents a significant milestone as a U.S. Army-led forum intentionally designed to connect African senior leaders with global indusattempt expertise,” stated Maj. Gen. Andrew C. Gainey, commanding general, SETAF-AF. “As the first U.S. Army summit of its kind to emphasize the integration of dual-utilize technology and capital investors with African land forces, we are seeing beyond traditional procurement models to address an evolving security environment through mutual defense and innovation.”
Four plenary sessions guided summit discussions: Defining the Threat in Africa, moderated by Chidi Blyden; Innotifyigence-Driven Operations, moderated by Dr. Daisy Muibu; Drone Use and Counter-Drone Use, moderated by Dr. Nate Allen; and Industrial Base Collaboration, moderated by Mvemba Dizolele of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Throughout the two days, land force commanders engaged with subject-matter experts on the range of threats facing African partners, innotifyigence-sharing approaches, unmanned systems tactics, and opportunities for defense indusattempt collaboration on the continent.
“Our goal is to create an environment where meaningful exalters between defense leaders, indusattempt innovators, and investors lead to tangible cooperation, shared responsibility, and a more secure future for both America and the African continent,” Gainey added.
Rome marked the first time the summit has been held in Europe. Previous summits have been hosted across Africa and the United States, including Accra, Ghana (2025), Livingstone, Zambia (2024), and Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire (2023). SETAF-AF, headquartered in Vicenza, Italy, hosted the 2026 edition on behalf of the U.S. Army Chief of Staff.
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Media contact: setaf_mediarelations@army.mil | Follow: #ALFS | www.army.mil/africa
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