Soldiers Bring Electronic Banking to Iraq

By Army Capt. Randy J. Michael
Special to American Forces Press Service

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, (Iraq) : Iraq may not be ready for PayPal, but with the help of the U.S. Army, the southern Iraqi provinces of Dhi Qar, Maysan and Al Muthanna are moving closer to a cashless system in order to deal with the mounting costs of dealing with cash.

Task Force Pathfinder is increasing its use of electronic funds transfer as a better way to pay local contractors and vendors instead of in stacks of Iraqi dinar. The transactions are part of the unit's role aiding the State Department's Provincial Reconstruction Teams as they build up the Iraqi civilian infrastructure.

Officials are pursuing the change to electronic transfers as a way to save money and reduce the security risks associated with transporting funds. Also, they say, electronic transfers increase public confidence in the Iraqi banking system, which gets a boost with every deposit.

Today, the U.S. Army brings an estimated $42 million in currency into Iraq and Afghanistan monthly, down from $192 million per month this time last year and as much as $400 million a month in 2003. With the development of new banks, including one nearing completion on base here, transferring funds electronically is becoming the preferred method of payment.

When paying for reconstruction projects with hard currency, the cost to the Army is about $32 per payment – nearly all of which goes to security costs -- compared to $2.50 per electronic transaction. Changing to an all-electronic transfer system of payments is expected to save the Army about $20 million annually.

Task Force Pathfinder's paying agents have handled more than $14 million in both dinar and electronic disbursements with local contractors and vendors in Maysan, Al Muthanna and Dhi Qar provinces in the past eight months. Another $21 million is approved and pending future payments for local humanitarian assistance projects. Most of this is to be paid via electronic transfer.

The Army would like to move to electronic money transfers for reconstruction contracts, but it isn't easy convincing Iraqi businessmen that an electronic receipt is going to pay them when they always have received bundles of cash. Contractors need reassurance that the process works. That means both soldiers and program managers must be well versed in the process and understand everyone's responsibility to ensure efficiency.

1st Lt. Andrew King, a disbursing agent with the 33rd Finance Management Company, explained the electronic process.

"We process the [payment] request and send it up within the first 24 to 48 hours," he said. "Then, Baghdad releases a voucher number. At this point, it takes five to seven days for the payment to reach the contractor's account."

Not only is the finance company a resource, but there also is an EFT Assistance Center, created and funded by the task force to serve as a help desk to stakeholders in Iraq's newly introduced payments system.

Since October 2008, the assistance center has resolved more than 150 payment problems totaling more than $15 million. The center also, provides monthly statistical analysis of the most common electronic payment problems within Iraq, and communicates the causes to Joint Contracting Command-Iraq, Defense Finance and Accounting Service, and other agencies.

The Army is working toward going cashless within the year for contracts with local vendors, Brig. Gen. Phillip E. McGhee, director of resource management for U.S. Army Central Command, said.

As Task Force Pathfinder soldiers continue their efforts to build civil capacity in southern Iraq, "the transition to electronic funds transfers is a welcomed sign of progress that has the added benefit of saving the U.S. government money," added Lt. Col. Mike Eastman, task force commander.

(Army Capt. Randy J. Michael serves with 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division public affairs.)
Related Sites:
U.S. Forces Iraq 

Army 1st Lt. Adam Marquis and Navy Lt. j.g. Christopher Deluzio, both assigned to Task Force Pathfinder, inspect the progress made on an electrical project in Dhi Qar province. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Aaron Brooks Download screen-resolution Download high-resolution

Security from inside a Stryker armored vehicle

 U.S. Army Capt. Patrick Mitchell, with 8th Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, provides security from inside a Stryker armored vehicle while en route to Taktehpol, Afghanistan, Jan. 4, 2010. (DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Francisco V. Govea II, U.S. Air Force/Released)

Face of Defense: Sons Follow in Father's Footsteps

By Army Sgt. Neil Gussman
Special to American Forces Press Service

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq :  Any parent whose child follows him into his profession will feel pride.

    A Pennsylvania National Guard soldier here can be doubly proud, then, as one son has followed in his military footsteps while another is pursuing his civilian career.
   Army Sgt. 1st Class Gary Williard of Company D, Task Force Diablo, is a retired police officer and an Army National Guard aircraft maintenance platoon sergeant.
     His older son, Gary Jr., joined the Tower City Police Force in Pennsylvania, where his father retired in 2006 as chief of police. Williard's younger son, Army Sgt. Joshua Williard of 628th Aviation Support Battalion's Company B, worked in the next hangar over from his dad during much of their recent deployment here and is now completing his deployment with final processing in the United States.
     "I pinned on Joshua's sergeant stripes when he got promoted here on Aug. 27," Williad said. "That was quite a moment for me."
     Williard began his military career in 1976 as a propeller and rotor mechanic for the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. After a break in service from 1982 to 1990, he returned to the Guard and has worked in maintenance on many aircraft. His younger son said he plans on a career in aviation maintenance with the Army National Guard.
     Gary Jr. worked for his father for five years in the Tower City Police Department before moving to the Pennsylvania State Police, where he has worked for seven years.
Williard and his wife, Dina, ran an automotive repair business together. Now they own rental apartments.

"Dina runs the apartments while I am away," Williard said. "With Joshua and I deployed and Gary Jr. busy with work, she'll be very happy for us to come home."
Williard deployed from 2003 to 2004 to Kuwait in both aviation maintenance and security roles.

"Even on deployment, I was still a cop," he said.

(Army Sgt. Neil Gussman serves with Task Force Diablo.)
Related Sites:
U.S. Forces Iraq 

Mullen Delivers Pep Talk to Air Force Falcon Football Team

Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, greets U.S. Air Force Academy Falcon football team members Dec. 30, 2009, the day before they play the University of Houston Cougars in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas. DoD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley 


(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.

Program Helps Servicemembers Transition to Civilian Life

By Christen N. McCluney
Special to American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON : The Department of Defense's Transition Assistance Program is working to prepare servicemembers and their families for a successful transition to civilian life.
"We are trying to ensure that [servicemembers] transition from active duty back to the civilian community is a smooth and seamless one," Ron Horne, deputy director for the Transition Assistance Program at the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy told listeners during a "Dot Mil Docs" interview today.

The idea of the program is to make them aware of the support systems that are available to them, he said. The DoD has a partnership with the Departments of Labor and Veterans Affairs to help servicemembers with their transition. The program also works with the Department of Homeland Security for Coast Guard Members as well.

Horne said that the program has five major components to it: pre-separation counseling, Department of Labor employment workshops, VA benefits briefings, the Disabled Transition Assistance Program and one-on-one counseling, all of which take place at local military installations and bases.

The pre-separation counseling component consists of an overview of 16 topics that counseling and coaching addresses with service members, Horne said. It gives a review of transition services, benefits, and resources available for the transition process.

The employment workshop is "a baseline to start looking and preparing for employment," said Horne. In the workshop, servicemembers go over skills including resume writing, creating cover letters, dressing for success and job search techniques.

The VA benefits briefing serves as a session to inform servicemembers of benefits they may be entitled to include the Montgomery GI Bill, healthcare, VA counseling and the home loan program.

Servicemembers who have a service related disability also must attend the DTAP briefing. "In this session they learn about the benefits they may be entitled based on their ratings from VA," Horne said.

Once servicemembers have completed those four core components of TAP, they are eligible for one-on-one counseling at their installations transition office, Horne said. Transition counselors assist the servicemembers in a variety of ways including completing their resume, information on medical benefits and technology access.

For Army installations, services are provided by Army Career and Alumni Program Centers. On Navy installations, the transition assistance office is usually located at the Fleet and Family Support Center, at Marine Corps Bases the services are provided through the Marine Corps Community Services and Air Force services are provided through the Airmen and Family Readiness Flight centers. Members of the Coast Guard can receive services through Work-Life offices.

Horne also said that many separating servicemembers are not looking for employment but are returning to school. "We encourage them to use their education benefits because they've earned it and that is one way to ensure that they are prepared to compete with their contemporaries that were getting an education while they were on active duty," he said.

He encourages servicemembers to start their transition process 12 months before voluntarily leaving the service and 24 months before retiring. "Anyone that reaches the 18th year mark should start the transition process," he said. "It is overwhelming when you wait until the last minute."

TAP also has a Web site, www.turbotap.org, which offers a timeline on the transitioning process and other resources that help with the entire process. "We are trying to get [servicemembers] started early enough so that they can plan to do things step by step."

He also said the TAP office is "rethinking and reshaping the program," so that transitioning isn't an event but a process from when a servicemember joins the military to their departure or retirement or as long as they need assistance once they become a veteran. The program hopes to guide servicemembers in setting career goals and starting financial planning early. They are also finding ways to leverage technology to reach their younger audiences through Facebook, Twitter, and texting.

"We feel that TAP needs to be designed and developed in a way that when a member needs it, it will be there for them. Whether it's a facility at a base or online for someone that is at a remote location," Horne said. "We think the future of Tap is bright and we have a way to go, but we have done some wonderful things."

(Christen N. McCluney works in the Defense Media Activity's Emerging Media directorate.)

Team Provides Expertise to Afghan Workers

By Air Force Capt. Tony Wickman 
Special to American Forces Press Service

KONAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan : Military and civilian members of the local provincial reconstruction team here are training Afghan workers how to build structures to exact engineering specifications.


On a visit to the Nowabad School construction project Dec. 26, Navy Chief Petty Officer David Zahm and Brandon Toliver, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers representative, met with the Afghan construction manager to discuss the project's progress and to offer critiques and support.

"It's important to do the work right. You have to make sure you're using good-quality materials and the right construction practices," Zahm said to Safiullah, the site manager.

It's important, Zahm said, to "do things the right way."

The Nowabad School project is one of many ongoing efforts to improve the infrastructure here. The school represents a $219,000 investment that will house 20 of 26 classes currently taught to more than 2,000 area boys and girls.

The construction project also provides much-needed jobs. Since most of those jobs are held by workers with scant building skills the team's engineers pass their knowledge to the site managers.

"You should have the skilled workers paired with the unskilled workers for two reasons," Zahm said to Safiullah. "One, it gives them the training to become skilled workers, and two, it teaches them the right way to do things."

As the engineers walked through the school construction site, they showed workers the proper mixture of sand and rocks to make cement.

"See this, these are too small and it won't work," said Zahm as he showed workers a handful of rocks from a pile used to mix concrete.

As the quality assurance and compliance check concluded, Zahm turned to Safiullah and offered words of encouragement.

"You're doing a good job and I know it is tough," Zahm told him. "But, you have to teach your workers how to do things the right way the first time."

(Air Force Capt. Tony Wickman serves with Combined Joint Task Force 82.) 

Face of Defense: Blind Officer Completes Course

By Kristin Molinaro 
Special to American Forces Press Service                                        


FORT BENNING, Ga., : The first blind student to attend the Maneuver Captain's Career Course here graduated with his class Dec. 15 in a ceremony attended by family and friends.

The 20-week course prepares captains for company commands and serving as staff officers at battalion and brigade level. "When I came here, I was kind of skeptical of how I would be received, being the blind guy," Army Capt. Ivan Castro said. "I thank my cadre and classmates for their support. I learned a lot from my peers, and I hope I taught them something. We all have a cross to carry. You have to pick up the pieces and move on." Castro, who's served in the Army for 21 years, was injured during offensive operations in Yusifiyah, Iraq, Sept. 2, 2006, while deployed with the 82nd Airborne Division. Shrapnel from an 82 mm mortar that landed five feet from his position on a rooftop struck Castro, a sniper reconnaissance platoon leader, and several others. The mortar killed two soldiers in his platoon and left him blind. Castro also suffered a bilateral aneurysm, collapsed lung, pulmonary embolism, bone fractures and a nicked artery. "Without command, without reservation, without hesitation, my guys jumped into action," said Castro, crediting his soldiers with saving his life. "If it wasn't for the training my guys received, I wouldn't be here right now." Castro spent six weeks on life support in an induced coma. Rehabilitation at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., helped him to adjust to life without sight, and within a year, he was running the Marine Corps Marathon. It was a "grueling" process, said his wife, Evelyn. After completing his rehabilitation, Castro returned to work as the executive officer for the 7th Special Forces Group at Fort Bragg, N.C. "One of your classmates is here today because his fellow warriors refused to cut him away like a bad parachute or let him fall behind," said Army Brig. Gen. Michael Repass, commanding general of the U.S. Army Special Forces Command, speaking to the graduates. "Our soldiers will go into the jaws of hell if they believe we aren't going to leave them behind. "That faith has to stick with our soldiers if they are wounded or otherwise incapacitated. We leaders cannot put them on the sidelines and walk away from them. I remain encouraged by the obvious courage ... of Ivan Castro." Throughout his life-changing transition, Castro insisted he not be treated differently, said Army Lt. Col. Fredrick Dummar, who worked with Castro at the 7th Special Forces Group and attended his MCCC graduation. "It was critical for him to attend MCCC," said Dummar, commander of the U.S. Army Special Operations Recruiting Battalion. "You can't stay on active duty as a captain without it. It would've been not only a fight to keep him on active duty with his injuries, but also to keep him on active duty without attending a mandatory school." Dummar said because Castro was a Special Forces soldier and wanted to remain on active duty, his case was reviewed. "We saw what his potential still was instead of what he can't do," Dummar said. "He may not be able to do every job in the Army, but by doing the job he can do, he's freeing up someone who can see to be doing something else." To keep up in classes, Castro said he used a voice recorder and computer screen-reading software. Castro enlisted his roommate, Army Capt. Gerard Torres, as a running buddy to ensure he kept on the track during physical training. Torres, who attended the Infantry Officer Basic Course with Castro in 2005, said Castro has been an inspiration to him. "We've laughed so hard and hated each other like brothers," Torres said. "The things he's taught me since the time I've known him are invaluable. Sometimes you sit there and start feeling bad for yourself, and then you look over, and there's Ivan, running 20 miles." In the coming weeks, Castro will report to his new assignment as the operations officer for the U.S. Special Operations Recruiting Battalion.    (Issued on : Dec. 24, 2009) Army Lt. Col. Fredrick Dummar, commander of the Special Operations Recruiting Battalion at Fort Bragg, N.C., congratulates Army Capt. Ivan Castro on graduating from the Maneuver Captain's Career Course at Fort Benning, Ga., Dec. 15, 2009. Castro, who will be assigned to the recruiting battalion, is the first blind student to attend the course. U.S. Army photo by Kristin Molinaro  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. (Kristin Molinaro writes for The Bayonet, the post newspaper at Fort Benning, Ga.)