ADF

During more than 30 years in the military, Maj. Gen. Gyane has held key positions in the Ghana Armed Forces, including commanding officer Base Workshop, Burma Camp; commanding officer Army Headquarters; director of Army Logistics; acting director of Army Administration; and director-general of plans, research and development at General Headquarters. He has served in United Nations peacekeeping missions in Lebanon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Western Sahara. He served in the U.N. and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) missions in Sierra Leone. In 2022, he was appointed commandant of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre…

ADF STAFF Border regions tend to be places of possibility and peril. They are where cultures meet. Where trade –– both legal and illegal –– thrives. Where journeys begin or end. Because they often are far from national capitals, border communities typically receive little investment, and people living there are vulnerable to coercion by criminal groups or extremists. “Borderlands in Africa are typically characterised by low state presence, mistrust between local communities and the state, and high levels of crime, insecurity and poverty,” the African Center for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD) wrote in a study of conflict management…

ADF STAFF | Photos by afp/getty images As  Senegalese citizens marked the 64th anniversary of their nation’s independence, children embraced the spirit of the day. One boy donned a cap and miniature matching uniform before joining celebrations in Dakar on April 4, 2023. Although quite a bit shorter, he closely imitated the Soldiers and gendarmes gathered along a city street. As citizens lined roads to view festive processions, military and police personnel stopped to acknowledge the younger set. One boy, draped in a stole featuring Senegal’s flag of green, gold and red, held a flag as he posed for pictures…

LT. CMDR. DJAIBLOND DOMINIQUE-YOHANN KOUAKOU, CÔTE D’IVOIRE NATIONAL NAVY Coastal countries in Africa face a variety of maritime threats. These include trafficking; illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing; illegal immigration; and piracy. But countries often lack the resources to monitor and protect their maritime domains. The task these countries face is enormous. If added together, Africa’s coastal countries are responsible for more than 13 million square kilometers of ocean, far beyond what they can patrol with vessels and traditional aircraft. Sub-Saharan African countries have a total of 420 vessels categorized as “surface combatants,” meaning ships designed for warfare on the…

ADF staff | photos by afp/getty images When Interpol coordinated international raids under Operation Jackal, it targeted Black Axe, a Nigeria-based organized crime group. In the 2022 sweep, authorities arrested 75 people, searched 49 properties and intercepted bank accounts worth nearly $1.3 million. Authorities also seized 12,000 cellphone SIM cards and identified 70 additional suspects. Investigators in 14 countries on six continents participated: Argentina, Australia, Côte d’Ivoire, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Nigeria, Spain, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States. A few months later in May 2023, Interpol continued Operation Jackal in 21…

ADF STAFF Despite an amazing array of natural resources, the Central African Republic (CAR) has endured years of civil war, poor governance and corruption. Traffickers, terrorists, mercenaries and thieves are stealing its wealth of diamonds, gold and high-grade lumber on an industrial scale. More than a third of the country is forest, contributing 13% of its export revenue, according to Enhancing Africa’s Response to Transnational Organised Crime (ENACT), a European Union project studying organized crime in Africa. But that’s only the revenue from legitimate logging operations. Untold amounts of furniture-grade hardwood leave the country illegally, usually shipped to China to…

ADF STAFF For years, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been plagued by international gangs slaughtering and selling parts from endangered animals.  “The DRC, which shares borders with nine countries, serves as an important transit point for the movement of trafficked parts,” the environmental news agency Mongabay reported in 2022. “The Central African nation, which hosts the largest swath of Congo Basin rainforest, is also a source country for illegal wildlife goods.” In one case, authorities conducted investigations for three years before raiding a “stash house” in the city of Lubumbashi, seizing 2 metric tons of ivory valued…

DEFENCEWEB Tunisia’s Air Force has taken delivery of eight Beechcraft T-6C Texan II trainer airplanes from the United States. Tunisian Pilots began training on the planes at Textron Aviation Defence facilities in Wichita, Kansas, in late 2022. The T-6Cs will serve as the new primary training aircraft for the Tunisian Air Force and will be flown by No. 13 Squadron at Sfax Air Base/Sfax-Thyna International Airport. The use of the aircraft will be supported by a suite of devices, including a ground-based training system, an operational flight trainer and a computer-based training lab. Tunisian Air Force students do their basic…

DEFENCEWEB Kenya has rededicated the patrol vessel KNS Shupavu after a local overhaul performed by Kenya Shipyards Ltd. at a new facility at Mombasa Shipyard at Mtongwe Naval Base. The refurbishment began in November 2021 and, according to Kenya Shipyards Ltd., involved replacing major components such as engines, generators and other machinery, and upgrading the vessel’s electrical systems, navigational equipment and other onboard systems.  Workers painted the ship and renovated its living quarters. A new crane was added to launch and recover boats. Mombasa Shipyard already had started work on the KNS Shupavu when the shipyard officially opened in December…

DEFENCEWEB The United States has announced an $80 million grant to supply four Bell 412EP helicopters to the Zambia Air Force. Gen. Michael Langley, commander of U.S. Africa Command, made the announcement in mid-September 2023, saying that the grant also covers three years of service, parts and training. Maj. Gen. Oscar Nyoni, Zambia Air Force deputy commander, said the grant will help the force better support Zambia’s domestic needs, regional security and United Nations peacekeeping missions abroad. U.S. Ambassador to Zambia Michael Gonzales said, “The contribution that the general announced today is not just helicopters. It is providing a solution…