Kofi Ampeah Woode
As part of the French Navy’s contribution to the Gulf of Guinea’s (GoG) maritime security, and under the Navy’s Operation CORYMBE, a French Navy offshore patrol vessel (OPV) COMMANDANT (CDT) DUCUING, has docked at the Port of Tema, to engage with the Ghana Navy (GN) and other stakeholders.
CDT DUCUING’s Tema Port Call will be from Tuesday 15 April to Monday 21 April, 2025, as part of the maritime surveillance and patrol exercises, which are regularly organized to increase the expertise of coastal navies across the entire spectrum of maritime security.
A delegation of the ship, led by the Defence Attaché (DA) to the French Embassy in Ghana – Colonel (Col) Grégoire Madelin, and the Commanding Officer (CO) of the French Naval Ship – Lieutenant Commander (Lt Cdr) Clement Bosson, visited Ghana’s Naval Headquarters, Burma Camp, Accra, and engaged a section of the Press.
Questioned by Peace Journal whether France, after experiencing disaffection against its military in West African states, is using the Port Call as one of the means to claw back some lost grounds, Col G Madelin stated emphatically that “France is not at war with anyone. There might be some political discussions, but not as far as the armed forces are concerned”.
He revealed that France is conducting discussions with partner countries in Africa to know if they want more or less military partnerships, according to the objectives that they want to achieve.
In certain countries like Gabon and Senegal, wherein there were French military bases, they have been transformed now into academies or training centres, and given to the host country, whiles the French military base in la Cote d’Ivoire has been handed over to the host country and re-christened General Ouattara.
He further said that France is not only fighting against piracy with her Navy, but is also supporting the efforts of governments in the GoG region, to fight against the roots of piracy, an example being the current French aid to the Ghanaian economy in the areas of agriculture, trade, and some others, to ensure that Ghanaians do not go into illegal activities, but have sufficient means of living for families and communities.
On what part his country plays in the Yaoundé Architecture – a means to make the GoG safe and secured – the French DA said from its inception, France has supported the Yaoundé Architecture.
“I would say that you will not find another navy, which is patrolling in the Gulf of Guinea in a permanent mode, like the French Navy is doing. There is no other”, he stated, for the Navy knows that the more there are criminality deterring ships in the GoG, the best it is for everyone, as the domain is an international route.
He further cited the multinational Exercise Grand African NEMO, which is mainly dedicated to support the operations of the Yaoundé Architecture, and led by France, coordinating between different authorities of the architecture in the western, eastern and central parts of the maritime region.
The French Maritime Command, located in Brest, France, provides strong support, not only with the navies, but also with human resources, planning and logistics, to make Exercise Grand African NEMO real and efficient.
Col Madelin further buttressed his point with France’s support for the YARIS (Yaoundé Architecture Regional Information System), with an agency called Expertise France, to monitor the GoG, share operational situation at the tactical level and in real time.
Speaking to the media, the Director, Operations, GN – Naval Captain Ebenezer Kwame Yirenkyi stated that even as Ghana’s naval force, together with its partners, have been successful in bringing maritime crimes under control, it would not rest on its oars, but would increase its dominance on sea, to deter maritime criminals, and make sure that criminal safe havens are not created within its domain.
Referring to the maritime space as a global common for all citizens of the world, he stated that GN believes that no single entity or country can provide the needed maritime security that all yearn for in the GoG, hence such visits are always welcome.
He continued to say that navies in the West African sub-region are doing well in terms of activities to ensure their security, however, when partners like France and others come in, it serves as another layer of security, and must not be seen as a show-off by the French Navy, but to also reassure everyone that there are friends out there who would always come to support West African navies.
“We cannot be out there 24-7, so if you have another vessel coming from a friend, a friendly state, to support our effort, then we always welcome that, not just for the security part of it, but also for capacity building”, Captain (GN) Yirenkyi stated.
He used the occasion to answer a question about a piracy attack in Ghanaian waters on 27 March 2025, on a Ghanaian-registered fishing vessel by name, MENGXIN 1, which led to the kidnapping of three sailors of Chinese nationality, to an unknown destination.
He stated that investigations are ongoing, the location of the kidnapped persons are not yet known, and that due to late information of the criminality on sea, GN could not intervene while the action was taking place. Meanwhile Ghanaian intelligence and law enforcement agencies are working to resolve the issues.
He further stated that the fact that consistently from 2022, there has not been any recorded decline in maritime security, indicates the alertness of GN, and that such tranquillity on sea happens as a result of neighbouring coastal states, and international partners come together to help make sure that the space is safe.
He indicated that GN has two ships stationed permanently around Ghana’s oil fields, to provide security for offshore platforms, in addition to robust physical patrols by other vessels, and the conduct of electronic monitoring from the maritime operations centres.
The Visiting CDT DUCUING
It is a medium-tonnage combat vessel of the A69 class, and the fifteenth in a series of seventeen, the first of which have been serving the French Navy since the mid-1970s.
Built by the Lorient arsenal, the ship was launched in August 1981 and commissioned in March 1983, and has been deployed in the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Atlantic Ocean since then, and has participated in every crisis in which the French Navy has been involved, being integrated into the Naval Action Force since July 5, 2000.
CDT DUCUING is powered by two 6,000 horsepower diesel engines, can reach a speed of 23 knots, and is equipped with the following weapons systems: a 100 mm turret; – two 20 mm cannons; – a SIMBAD anti-aircraft mount; -four 12.7 mm machine guns.
By Kofi Ampeah-Woode
