Comment: Multinationals must take stock after Algeria crisis AS GREATER clarity and understanding emerges of what, precisely, has occurred at the gas complex at In Amenas, attention will swiftly turn to the political and military ramifications of the attack. Locally, there will be much attention on how a relatively small number of militants could travel a great distance and without much effort seize critical national infrastructure and hundreds of hostages. Further afield, there is another significant group that will be giving much thought to the consequences of these and other events. They are the large number of multinational companies working within the extractive, agricultural, oil and gas industries, with the accompanying long-distance supply chains that are only efficient if transportation is conducted safely and securely. With the world's supply of easily accessible resources rapidly declining, these industries are now required to operate in complex and unstable regions. The rapid economic growth currently being experienced across sub-Saharan Africa is in part down to the willingness of these multinationals to commit billions of dollars to building the necessary infrastructure. Many will now be reviewing how to better secure that infrastructure. Their first approach will be to review physical security, their ability to react to threats and how to ensure that they integrate their current and future security requirements with their host government's needs and those of the local population. This is no easy task. My own observations, having operated commercially in Africa for the last three years, are that some will get it about right, but many more will not. The underlying complexities lie in the fragile nature of some of the states they are operating in, the lack of coherent long-term security sector reform initiatives in key countries and a narrow approach to solutions by the companies themselves. Attempts by multinationals to play their part in fostering stability in complex and unstable environments have had mixed success. I can draw direct parallels with the military and their counter-insurgency efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. In essence, it took the military some time to recognise that the local population was the prize and that its support would not be forth­coming unless our presence produced a mutual advantage or gain. Major General (retd) Andrew Mackay commanded British and coalition forces in Afghanistan. More recently, he is the co-author of Behavioural Conflict - Why Understanding People And Their Motivations Will Prove Decisive in Future Conflict.