Publications /
Policy Paper

Back
Defence & Security Acquisition – a Guide to a Complex System
Authors
John Louth
Trevor Taylor
August 22, 2017

This paper reports on the vital relationship between government and defence industries, and how the core features necessary for defence and security capabilities can be delivered in the national interest. The paper will examine how a defence acquisition process can be set up so as to enable defence businesses to thrive within and beyond national borders, and to ensure that they support the forward plans of government, the military and security services.

Taking a seven stage approach, this paper will define the whole of the defence acquisition process. It will start by focusing on the importance of defence capability requirements, as framed through a conventional Western taxonomy. It will then address the approvals process by decision makers at Ministry and governmental level, through which verification is obtained that the requirements meet defence policy, are feasible and affordable. The paper will then look at how the approvals process leadings to the start of the procurement stage, and after this how the support needs will be address. Approaching the end, the paper will then address the disposal requirements. Finally, it will study how all these tasks should be executed in an integrated and coherent fashion by the defence community, and the international dimension to many projects involving other partner governments.

In summary, the paper will introduce the reader to acquisition and through-life capability management in a systemic and comprehensive manner, but it should not be taken as an exhaustive map of the field. The topics examined are often contentious and there are many ways that states generate force capabilities; still, this paper offers a sensible and well-tested approach to defence acquisition, formed through Western experience.

RELATED CONTENT

  • Authors
    September 15, 2025
    The October 2025 general elections in Tanzania unfold within a political culture grounded in consensus and institutional continuity. President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s leadership has reopened political space by restoring elite dialogue, easing restrictions on rallies, and facilitating the return of exiled figures. Yet the exclusion of CHADEMA—the principal opposition party—highlights the enduring limits of pluralism. This paper analyzes the Tanzanian electoral process less as a convent ...
  • Authors
    Fadoua Ammari
    September 12, 2025
    The Atlantic Initiative, announced by King Mohammed VI in November 2023 to provide landlocked Sahelian countries with access to the Atlantic Ocean via Moroccan territory, promises to profoundly reshape the bilateral relationship between Rabat and Nouakchott. This research paper examines how this unprecedented project creates new strategic opportunities while raising shared challenges for Morocco and Mauritania. Diplomatically, the rapprochement around the Atlantic Initiative unfolds ...
  • Authors
    September 4, 2025
    This policy brief analyzes the first 100 days in office of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, which have been marked by an assertive foreign policy, ambitious security reforms, and a shift toward economic pragmatism. Merz has sought to reestablish Germany as a ‘leading middle power’, emphasizing closer European coordination, renewed transatlantic engagement, and unwavering support for Ukraine. However, his approach to the Gaza conflict, characterized by alignment with U.S. positions and rel ...
  • Authors
    Fadoua Ammari
    August 28, 2025
    L’Initiative Atlantique, annoncée par le Roi Mohammed VI en novembre 2023, visant à offrir aux pays sahéliens enclavés un accès à l’océan Atlantique via le territoire marocain, promet de redessiner en profondeur la relation bilatérale entre Rabat et Nouakchott. Cet article examine comment ce projet inédit crée de nouvelles opportunités stratégiques tout en soulevant des défis partagés pour le Maroc et la Mauritanie. Sur le plan diplomatique, le rapprochement autour de l’Initiative A ...
  • August 15, 2025
    This episode explores the evolving African defense strategies in response to emerging security threats. We discuss the shift toward regional cooperation, modernization of military capabilities, and integration of technology. The conversation highlights the role of governance, economic r...
  • August 01, 2025
    In this episode, we explore how the United Nations works beyond traditional peacekeeping contexts to support justice and security sector reform in fragile contexts. Our guest, Jérôme Mell ...
  • July 17, 2025
    In this episode, we explore Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing in Atlantic Africa, a crisis that drains marine resources, harms coastal livelihoods, and threatens regional security. Luis Miguel Escudeiro da Costa Cabral from the Atlantic Centre joins us, sharing how his ...
  • Authors
    Niccola Milnes
    July 14, 2025
    Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), alongside the Front de Libération de l’Azawad (FLA), has pioneered drone warfare in the Sahel–evolving from its first armed strike in September 2023 to over a dozen coordinated operations by June 2025. JNIM’s drone-enabled attacks–spanning kamikaze strikes, ISR- guided assaults, and visual propaganda–now target Mali, Burkina Faso, and Togo. It is the only known armed group in Africa–and one of the few globally–to conduct sustained, opera ...