What is MoDA?

The Ministry of Defense Advisors (MoDA) program is designed to forge long-term relationships that strengthen the enabling and support capabilities of a partner nation's defense ministry. The program, managed by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) matches senior U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) civilians with partner-identified requirements and provides backfill funding to the experts' parent organizations. In most cases an advisor is assigned a host-country counterpart with a similar specialty, so that they may share functional expertise. The advisors deploy for up to two years under the auspices of the Civilian Expeditionary Workforce.

What is the MoDA Training Program?

The Directorate for Training Readiness and Strategy (TRS) at the Office of the Under Secetary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness - OUSD(P&R) - manages an eight-week training program to prepare MoDA advisors to serve in partner-nation Ministries of Defense and Interior. The MoDA Training Program is the first advisor course designed and implemented by DoD since the conflict in Vietnam. It is also unique in the Department as a collective training program for civilians. Students receive intensive instruction in the operational environment, culture, language, advising skills, personal security, and civilian-military coordination.

What are the MoDA Training Program Objectives?

The pre-deployment training objectives are to: 1) Teach functional experts the necessary tools, approaches, and skills to become effective mentors, advisors, and capacity builders; 2) Impart cultural, historical, and political knowledge of the host-country Ministry of Defense and/or Ministry of Interior environments; and 3) Prepare advisors to be safe, resilient, and adaptable while deployed.