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41-668: The Support Services Brigade is a unit of the Ghana Armed Forces . The expansion of the Ghana military support unit was completed in 1962 with the establishment of the Ghana Army by an act of the Parliament of Ghana and restructuring of the Ghana Army into two infantry brigades, the 1st and the 2nd. The Common Services Establishment Committee was formed in January 1969 with the aim of creating

82-612: A cadet officer. He was commissioned in the Ghana Army in 1959, and served as a member of the UN peacekeepers during the Congo Crisis . Then commander of Ghana's First Infantry Brigade, Acheampong led a bloodless coup d'état to overthrow the democratically elected government of the Progress Party and its leader Dr Kofi Busia on 13 January 1972. He became head of state and chairman of

123-810: A civilian President in 1993 and continued as president until 2001. The Armed Forces' first external operation was the United Nations Operation in the Congo in the early 1960s. The GAF operated in the Balkans , including with UNMIK . Ghanaian operations within Africa included the UNAMIR deployment which became entangled in the Rwandan genocide . In his book Shake Hands with the Devil , Canadian Forces commander Romeo Dallaire gave

164-531: A logistics brigade for the Ghana Army using auxiliary units. In October 1969, the services and units were combined to form the Support Services Brigade Group, primarily for administrative efficiency rather than operational purposes. The new Brigade's headquarters consisted mostly of troops from the Army Engineers, who were involved in various civil assistance activities such as the construction of

205-523: Is staffed by GAF military personnel and also houses a medical education training facility. 37 Military Hospital is also accredited for post-graduate medical education teaching. Vyacheslav Lebedev , Chairman of the Supreme Court of Russia , expressed gratitude following his emergency treatment at the hospital. The Ghana Army operates a Cadet Corps for GAF Cadets whom go on to Military Education and Training and Recruit Training graduation from

246-523: The 1966 Ghanaian coup d'état , against the Nkrumah regime. The group formed the National Liberation Council , which ruled Ghana from 1966 to 1969. The Armed Forces seized power again in January 1972, after the reinstated civilian government cut military privileges and started changing the leadership of the army's combat units. Lieutenant Colonel Ignatius Kutu Acheampong (temporary commander of

287-592: The 2nd (West Africa) Infantry Brigade . Gold Coast soldiers returning from the Far East carried different perspectives from when they had departed. The Ghana Armed Forces were formed in 1957. Major General Stephen Otu was appointed Chief of Defence Staff in September 1961. From 1966, the Armed Forces were extensively involved in politics, mounting several coups. Kwame Nkrumah had become Ghana's first prime minister when

328-680: The 37 Military Hospital in Accra and the Kumasi Military Hospital in the north. The 37 Military Hospital has recently undergone expansion and its facilities include a twenty-four-hour Emergency Department (ED). The GAF main military hospital has been organized into departments and divisions, which created structure within the establishment. The Divisions and Departments (the units) are developed and joined according to medical, paramedical and administrative lines and each of these units has its own departmental head. The GAF military hospital

369-642: The Akosombo Dam . The initial commander of the headquarters was Colonel Douglas Sanni-Thomas, who was later replaced by Colonel Victor Coker-Appiah . In May 1985, the Support Service Brigade Group was created, and it was reactivated in June 1987 under the Army Headquarters. The headquarters was relocated to Medo Lines, Burma Camp. In 1996, the brigade underwent reorganization and was no longer under

410-612: The Armed Forces Revolutionary Council , which governed until September 1979. However, in 1981, Rawlings deposed the new civilian government again, in the 1981 Ghanaian coup d'état . This time Rawlings established the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC). The PNDC remained in government until January 7, 1993. In the last years of the PNDC, Jerry Rawlings assumed civilian status; he was elected as

451-665: The Ghana Military Police , Defence Signal Regiment (Ghana) , FRO, Forces Pay Office, 37 Military Hospital , Defence Mechanical Transport Battalion (Def MT Bn), Base Ordnance Depot, Base Ammunition Depot, Base Supply Depot, Base Workshop, Armed Forces Printing Press (AFPP), Armed Forces Fire Service (AFFS), the Ghana Armed Forces Central Band , Ghana Armed Forces Institution (GAFI), 1 Forces Movement Unit ( Tema Port), 5 Forces Movement Unit, Base Engineer Technical Services (BETS), 5 Garrison Education Centre (5 GEC),

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492-788: The Minister of Defence and the Chief of Defence Staff . In 1879, the Gold Coast Constabulary was established by personnel of the Hausa Constabulary of Southern Nigeria, to perform internal security and police duties in the British colony of the Gold Coast . In this guise, the regiment earned its first battle honour as part of the Ashanti campaign. The Gold Coast Constabulary was renamed in 1901 as

533-801: The National Democratic Congress (NDC) and Ghana Union Movement (GUM) , has jointly urged the Akufo-Addo administration to refrain from deploying the Ghana Armed Forces to restore the democratically elected president of Niger , Mohamed Bazoum , who was ousted from power by General Abdourahamane Tchiani . However, Hon. Kennedy Ohene Agyapong , the Chairperson of the Interior and Defense Committee in Parliament, has expressed his endorsement of

574-598: The National Redemption Council (NRC), which was later transformed into the Supreme Military Council on 9 October 1975, with Colonel Acheampong (promoted to General) as its chairman. A few months after Acheampong came to power, on 27 April 1972, former president Kwame Nkrumah died in exile. Power in Ghana had changed hands several times since Nkrumah was overthrown, and Acheampong allowed Nkrumah's body to be returned and buried on 9 July 1972 at

615-475: The photographing of Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) Ghana Military Police (GMP) police or GAF military personnel and vehicles while on duty, strategic sites such as Kotoka International Airport when in use, and the seat of the Ghanaian government, Jubilee House . Ignatius Kutu Acheampong Ignatius Kutu Acheampong ( / ə ˈ tʃ æ m ˈ p ɒ ŋ / ə-CHAM-PONG ; 23 September 1931 – 16 June 1979)

656-696: The Armed Forces Museum, Army Signals Training School, and the Armed Forces Secondary Technical School (AFSTS). By 2016 the Forces Pay Office had been upgraded to the Forces Pay Regiment. The Armed Forces uses imported weaponry and locally manufactured secondary equipment. M16 rifles , AK-47s , Type 56 assault rifles , ballistic vests and personal armor are standard issue, while much of the secondary equipment used by

697-807: The Army and Air Force are manufactured internally by the Defence Industries Holding Company (DIHOC). External suppliers include Russia, Iran, and China. The Armed Forces are heavily committed to international peacekeeping operations. Ghana prefers to send its troops to operations in Africa. However the United Nations has used Ghanaian forces in countries as diverse as Afghanistan , Iraq , Kosovo , Georgia , Nepal , Cambodia and Lebanon . Currently, Ghanaian armed forces are posted to United Nations peacekeeping missions in: Ghana armed forces provided

738-649: The First Brigade around Accra) led the bloodless 1972 Ghanaian coup d'état that ended the Second Republic. Thus the National Redemption Council was formed. Acheampong became head of state, and the NRC ruled from 1972 to 1975. On October 9, 1975, the NRC was replaced by the Supreme Military Council (SMC). Council members were Colonel Acheampong, (chairman, who was also promoted straight from Colonel to General ), Lt. Gen. Fred Akuffo , (the Chief of Defence Staff ), and

779-743: The GAF Military Academy for Army Recruit and Seaman Recruit prior to enlistment into the Army, Navy or Air Force. Training institutions include the Ghana Military Academy and the Ghana Army-sponsored Cadet Corps . Also located in Accra is the internationally funded Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre , which is not part of the Armed Forces but provides a wide-ranging of peace operations training, including to GAF personnel. The Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (GAFCSC) dates back to 1963. It

820-450: The Ghana Army. The Ghana Navy's mission is to provide defence of Ghana and its territorial waters, fishery protection, exclusive economic zone , and internal security on Lake Volta . It is also tasked with resupplying GA (Ghana Army) peacekeepers in Africa, fighting maritime criminal activities such as Piracy , disaster and humanitarian relief operations, and evacuation of Ghanaian citizens and other nationals from troubled spots. In 1994

861-795: The Ghanaian soldiers high praise for their work during that deployment. During the Liberian Civil War , Ghanaian activities helped pave the way for the Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement , among others. Additional operations in Asia have included Iran and Iraq in the Iran–Iraq War , Kuwait and Lebanon civil war among others. A total of 3,359 Ghana Army soldiers and 283 Ghana Military Police operated as part of UNTAC in Cambodia . The UNTAC operation lasted two years, 1992−1993. After

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902-947: The Gold Coast Regiment, following the foundation of the West African Frontier Force , under the direction of the Colonial Office of the British Government . The regiment raised a total of five battalions for service during the First World War , all of which served during the East Africa campaign. During the Second World War , the regiment raised nine battalions, and saw action in Kenya's Northern Frontier District, Italian Somaliland, Abyssinia and Burma as part of

943-562: The Navy was re-organized into an Eastern command, with headquarters at Tema , and a Western command, with headquarters at Sekondi-Takoradi . The Ghana Armed Forces, in addition to owning its own arms industry weapons and military technology and equipment manufacturer (DIHOC − Defence Industries Holding Company), operates its own private bank . The military private bank is sited at Burma Camp and serves Ghanaian military personnel and their civilian counterparts. The GAF has two hospitals,

984-642: The St Peter's school (also Catholic) at Kumasi , both in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. He attended the then Central College of Commerce at Agona Swedru in the Central Region of Ghana . Acheampong worked as a stenographer/secretary at Timber Sawmill in Kumasi and later taught at Kumasi Commercial College, where he became Vice Principal at Agona-Swedru College of Commerce. Acheampong trained at Aldershot, England, as

1025-805: The University of Ghana and GIMPA. The Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS) is the payment made to the Ghana Arm Forces. The salary structure started in 2010 has increased the income of the military. Payment structure with the Single Spine differs from each officer depending on their ranking . Ghanaian statutory law officially prohibits civilians and foreign nationals from wearing military apparel such as camouflage clothing, or clothing which resembles military dress. Officially, fines and/or short prison sentences can be passed against civilians seen in military dress in public. In addition, Ghanaian law prohibits

1066-466: The army, navy, air force and Border Guard Unit commanders. In July 1978, in a sudden move, the other SMC officers forced Acheampong to resign, replacing him with Lt. Gen. Akuffo. The SMC apparently acted in response to continuing pressure to find a solution to the country's economic dilemma; inflation was estimated to be as high as 300% that year. The council was also motivated by Acheampong's failure to dampen rising political pressure for changes. Akuffo,

1107-537: The command of the Army Headquarters. Instead, it was placed under the General Headquarters, along with all the units under it. As of 2016, the units under the Support Services Brigade Group are: Ghana Armed Forces The Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces is the president of Ghana , who is also the supreme military commander of the Border Guard Unit (BGU). The armed forces are managed by

1148-744: The country became independent in 1957. As Nkrumah's rule wore on, he began to take actions which disquieted the leadership of the armed forces, including the creation and expansion of the President's Own Guard Regiment (POGR). As a result, on February 24, 1966, a small number of Army personnel and senior police officials, led by Colonel Emmanuel Kotoka , commander of the Second Brigade at Kumasi , Major Akwasi Afrifa , (staff officer in charge of army training and operations), Lieutenant General (retired) Joseph Ankrah , and J.W.K. Harlley , (the police inspector general), successfully launched "Operation Cold Chop",

1189-627: The first Force Commander of the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group ( ECOMOG ), Lieutenant General Arnold Quainoo . Quainoo led the force from July 1990 to September 1990. Ghana Armed Forces peacekeepers have many roles: patrolling , as military police , electoral observers , de-miners ( bomb disposal units and clearance divers ), ceasefire monitors, humanitarian aid workers, and even special forces or frogmen against insurgents . A group of opposition political parties and civil society organizations, comprising

1230-479: The global environment. The Ghana Armed Forces have been engaged in peacekeeping operations since 1960. This meant broadening the array of courses provided by GAFCSC. Consequently, the college aimed to establish partnerships with the University of Ghana and GIMPA to offer diverse peacekeeping and other courses. With the attainment of Institutional Accreditation, the college is now prepared to conduct its own courses, while still maintaining its collaborative association with

1271-440: The idea of a government in which the military could still play a role and proposed a 'Union Government' with power sharing between the civilian and the armed forces. This led to student demonstrations and the closure of universities. Violent clashes between pro and anti UNIGOV factions led to the death of at least four people in Kumasi. Following 4 June 1979 military uprising that brought Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings and

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1312-413: The long running Cambodia civil war ignited by external interventions, a resolution was accepted by the four warring factional parties. Operation UNTAC was the largest Ghanaian external operation since Ghana's first external military operation, ONUC in the Congo in the 1960s. Operation UNTAC and its contingent UNAMIC had a combined budget of more than $ 1.6 billion. In 2012, closer military cooperation

1353-499: The nation's deployment of troops to Niger. The Ghana Air Force is headquartered in Burma Camp in Accra , and operates from bases in Accra (main transport base), Tamale (combat and training base)and Sekondi-Takoradi (training base). The GHF military doctrine and stated mission is to perform counterinsurgency operations within Ghana or externally and to provide logistical support to

1394-433: The new SMC chairman, promised publicly to hand over political power to a new government to be elected by July 1, 1979. The decree lifting the ban on party politics went into effect on January 1, 1979, as planned. However, in June, just before the scheduled resumption of civilian rule, a group of young armed forces officers, led by Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings , mounted the 1979 Ghanaian coup d'état . They put in place

1435-427: The reconstruction/upgrading of stadia to meet international standards. There were, however, widespread accusations of both the encouragement and endorsement of corruption in the country under his rule. Also, Ghana began experiencing the troubles it had suffered under previous administrations, with increasing food prices and soaring inflation. Under intense political pressure, Acheampong began in late 1976 to flirt with

1476-564: The uprising. Acheampong was married to Faustina Acheampong . One grandson is an American football player Charlie Peprah . His other grandson is 6' 9" Fulham F.C. striker Yakini Acheampong. Whilst bought up a Catholic, during his rule he addressed both a gathering of 'Spiritual Churches' in July 1972 and a pagan ceremony, the 'Cow Slaughtering ceremony' at Shana for the Pra River god on 1 December 1973. At both events, his comments express belief in

1517-563: The village of his birth, Nkroful , Ghana. Notable historical changes and events introduced or implemented in Ghana during the period under Acheampong include: the change from the imperial to the metric system of measurement, change from driving on the left to right-hand traffic in "Operation Keep Right", Operation Feed Yourself (a programme aimed at developing self-reliance in agriculture), "National Reconstruction" (aimed at promoting employment and skill for workers), face-lift projects in cities, and

1558-455: The young officers of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) to power, Acheampong was court martialed and executed along with General Edward Kwaku Utuka by firing squad on 16 June. Ten days later, two other former heads of state, Akwasi Afrifa and Fred Akuffo , and senior military officers Joy Amedume , George Boakye , Roger Joseph Felli and Robert Kotei , were executed. The AFRC returned Ghana to civilian rule three months after

1599-487: Was a Ghanaian military officer and politician who was the military head of state of Ghana from 13 January 1972 to 5 July 1978, when he was deposed in a palace coup. He was executed by firing squad on 16 June 1979. Acheampong was born to Catholic parents of Ashanti origin. His parents were James Kwadwo Kutu Acheampong, a Catholic Catechist, and Madam Akua Manu. He attended the Roman Catholic schools at Trabuom and

1640-817: Was agreed with the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation . In 2013, the Armed Forces agreed closer military cooperation with the China People's Liberation Army , and with the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran . The Ghana Army is structured as follows: In 1996, the Support Services Brigade was reorganized and transferred from the Army to be responsible to the Armed Forces GHQ. From that point its units included 49 Engineer Regiment ,

1681-409: Was to provide training for Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) officers and affiliated officers from Africa, focusing on command and staff duties. Throughout its history, it has hosted and educated individuals from neighboring African states. It focuses on military and defense courses, culminating in the issuance of the Pass Staff College (PSC) certificate. The range of programs expanded, driven by the demands of

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