Command and General Staff College Foundation News Spring 2020 - 12

Senegal, Trinidad and Tobago
officers join International Hall of Fame
by Katie Peterson, Fort Leavenworth Lamp

PHOTOS BY JIM SHEA/ARMYU PUBLIC AFFAIRS

IHOF inductees Maj. Gen. Francois Ndiaye, chief of staff of the
Senegalese Army, CGSC class of 1994; and retired Maj. Gen.
Rodney Smart, former chief of Defence Staff of the Trinidad and
Tobago Defence Force, CGSC Class of 2009-01, along with
CGSC Foundation Chairman Mike Hockley and CGSC Deputy
Commandant Brig. Gen. Stephen Maranian stand at attention as
the national anthems of each country are played at the end of
the ceremony Oct. 3, 2019, at the Lewis and Clark Center.

TWO NEW MEMBERS WERE INDUCTED INTO THE COMMAND
GENERAL STAFF COLLEGE INTERNATIONAL HALL OF
FAME IN A CEREMONY OCT. 3, 2019, in the Lewis and
Clark Center's Eisenhower Auditorium. Their portraits now
hang in the IHOF hallway alongside 283 other inductees
representing 75 different nations.
The newest inductees are Maj. Gen. Francois Ndiaye,
chief of staff of the Senegalese Army, CGSC class of
1994; and retired Maj. Gen. Rodney Smart, former chief of
Defence Staff of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force,
CGSC Class of 2009-01.
"Each (IHOF member) became eligible for this recognition
through years of distinguished service to their nation, rising
to the highest positions of uniformed leadership within
their home military," said Brig. Gen. Stephen Maranian,
CGSC deputy commandant and Army University provost.
"International participation in the Command and General
Staff Officer Course is an important and integral part of
the Leavenworth experience. ... Our international students
share their diverse cultures and experiences throughout
the year making all of us better at our profession. Today's
inductees are proof of the quality of our international
graduates."
Ndiaye joined the Senegalese Army as a cadet at the
Meknes Royal Military Academy in Morocco in July 1980.
Throughout his career he has held assignments as platoon
commander, company commander and garrison commander
for various companies, battalions and brigades.
From May 2007 to July 2009, Ndiaye was the chief
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12 - CGSC FOUNDATION NEWS | www.cgscfoundation.org

military liaison and planning officer of the United Nations
Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad. From
January 2012 to July 2014, he served as senior military
adviser at the U.N. Office for Central Africa. In April 2016,
he was promoted to brigadier general and appointed chief
of staff of the Senegalese Army. Currently, he is serving as
the inspector general of the Senegalese Armed Forces.
Ndiaye is the 284th IHOF inductee and the third from
his nation.
"General Ndiaye is an excellent example of his
nation's commitment to cooperative military education
and training," Maranian said. "He has demonstrated his
continued commitment to education and learning as a Ph.D.
candidate in the study of public law."
Ndiaye said he is proud of the education he received at
CGSC.
"Twenty-five years later, the world has changed. In fact,
it is a whole new world with its complex strengths and
challenges. The future will not be what we expected, but
it still expects a lot of us," Ndiaye said. "Fortunately, the
huge replica of the lamp is still outside as a beacon light of
future understanding and sharing a common vision for long
life friendships.
"I want to wish good luck for a bright future to the CGSC
class (2020) participants," he said. "I'm not asking you to
fix all the problems on this planet. I'm just asking you to
do whatever you can for your country and make the best of
the best year of your life."
During his 36 years of service, Maj. Gen. Smart held
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