Kofi Ampeah Woode
Under the Ghana Navy (GN) Danish Support Fund, Denmark has given two brand new (2) Toyota Pick-ups – Hilux and Landcruiser – to the GN Special Boat Squadron (SBS), to facilitate movement, to help improve operational efficiency and effectiveness; and a 4-year scholarship program in Underwater Medicine in South Africa, to one Medical personnel.
The presentation of the vehicles was made at GN’s Headquarters, Burma Camp, Accra, on Friday 21 February 2025, by the Danish Ambassador to Ghana – His Excellency (HE) Mr Tom Norring, and were received by the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), GN – Vice Admiral (V/Adm) Issah Adam Yakubu.
V/Adm IA Yakubu, in acknowledging the help of Denmark to GN, cited the country’s provision of training programs (both in Ghana and Denmark), strategic planning, essential maritime equipment and logistical assistance, to support efforts to build a more capable and resilient maritime force, to face the challenges in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) – in which a number of Danish commercial vessels ply.
He admitted a particular gap GN has identified – Naval Medicine Capability – not just in the SBS, but also in all underwater operations, and was thus thankful for the scholarship to the Stellenbosch University, South Africa, offered to Lieutenant Commander (Dr) Jemima Yeboah, to study Bachelor of Science in that direction.
Describing Diving Operations as a special field and very risky, requiring specialized medical care in critical times, Admiral Yakubu stated that neither GN nor Ghana has expertise in that field, for there have been incidents where the lack of naval medical specialists have led to undesirable consequences.
HE Mr Tom Norring on his part said Denmark’s donation of equipment, infrastructure and vehicles may not be capacity building per se, but important enablers and building blocks, which have helped nurture the GNSBS in its early stage of development, to its present state.
He also stated that later 2025, the cooperation between the SBS and the Frogman Corps will be evaluated, as the operational design will be revisited.
He predicts, however, that the cooperation would move in the direction of a partnership, where the Units would share ideas, and the SBS can focus on development of other relevant areas, in order to sustain operations, education and logistics, with increased focus on maintenance and sustainability.
“Our cooperation is not only about Special Forces. It is about the development of the Navy in general, and about maritime security in the broad sense”, Ambassador Norring said.
There is a 3-year-old Trilateral Agreement between the GN, Danish Special Warfare Group, and the United States Naval Forces Europe and Africa (NAVAF), under which the Danish Government through the Danish Frogman Corps, has nurtured the GNSBS to its matured state currently.
In 2023, the Danish Government, through the Danish Special Warfare Group – also known as Frogman Corps – presented 2 Mitsubishi vehicles to the GN, and also formed a partnership between the Danish Government and the SBS.
In August 2024, Denmark and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime collaborated and built a new state-of-the-art Ship-in-a-Box training facility, for training maritime law enforcement personnel in Visit Board Search and Seizure (VBSS), to ensure the safety and security of maritime operations in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG), for GN.
In the fall of 2024, Denmark built a Full Mission Bridge Simulator at GN’s Naval Training Command, in the Volta Region of Ghana, to aid in training seafarers, enhancing ship handling, navigation, and decision-making skills, and to improve safety and security of navigation.
Present at the function included the Deputy Chief of Staff, Logistics, General Headquarters (GHQ), Ghana Armed Forces – Rear Admiral Samuel Agyenim-Boateng; Director General, Joint Operations, GHQ – Brigadier General John Ampadu; the Chief Staff Officer at the Naval HQ – Commodore Emmanuel Bright Atiayao; Deputy Chief Staff Officers; Defence Attaché of Denmark to Ghana – Colonel Lasse Sand; Senior Officers, Officers, Master Coxswain of GN, Ratings, and Defence Civilian Staff.
By Kofi Ampeah-Woode
