1. Clarify FET roles and narrow the scope of their assigned functions so that their roles are not
contradictory; verify the reasoning for why FETs are assigned to certain roles for accuracy against the
experience and cultural expertise of locals and aid/development workers in the local community.
Examine whether FETs would endanger local women and do not use if so.
2. Craft measures of performance, effectiveness, and accountability for FET program design in
consultation with those knowledgeable of the local community, including both locals and
aid/development workers who have had years of experience forming such evaluation parameters.
3. Incorporate baselines, “before and after” scenarios, and improved reporting formats in FET
evaluation reports which do not lend themselves as easily to “success reporting.”
Implications.
If measures of performance and effectiveness are not created for FETs in consultation with those
knowledgeable of the local community and culture, then these measures may not be culturally
appropriate. If measures of performance and effectiveness that are not culturally-sensitive are used to
evaluate FETs, then FETs may misinterpret local community responses, mistaking grandstanding for
sincere intent. If FETs misunderstand local community responses, they may misrepresent the locals,
unintentionally providing misleading situational awareness/atmospherics to military leaders, which
may cause military leaders to make decisions based on inaccurate information. If baselines, “before
and after” scenarios, and measures of accountability are not created and implemented for FET, then
FETs may remain unaware of unintended second- and third-order effects that their actions may have
on local communities; if FETs are not aware of potential implications of their actions on the protection
of civilians in the local community, then they may continue to engage local communities in ways that
may be potentially harmful to the local people.
Event Description.
This lesson is primarily based on “Seeking out their Afghan Sisters: Female Engagement Teams in
Afghanistan,” S. Azarbaijani-Moghaddam, Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) Working Paper, (March
2014). The author of this Working Paper had extensive experience as Cultural Advisor to ISAF
military commanders after sixteen years of experience in Afghanistan; she worked particularly in RC-
S and RC-SW, and her working paper is based on her participant observation and analysis of US Marine
Corps and UK FETs from early 2010 to early 2012 in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan. //
For more information about U.S. military FETs, see the Joint Requirement Oversight Council
Memorandum (JROCM) Task 12 FET Blueprint from PKSOI (prepared by K. Gehman).
Additional Comments:
It is vital for women to play meaningful roles not only in security but also in peace amidst conflict
environments. “The empirical evidence is overwhelming: where women’s inclusion is prioritized,
peace is more likely – particularly when women are in a position to influence decision making” (“Why
Women? Inclusive Security and Peacebuilding Societies,” M. O’Reilly, Inclusive Security, (October
2015), p. 11).
Lesson Author: Katrina Gehman, Lessons Learned Analyst (Ctr), PKSOI
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