The Ghana Navy (GN) is the naval warfare organizational military branch of the Ghanaian Armed Forces (GAF). The Ghanaian Navy, along with the Ghanaian Army (GA) and Ghanaian Air Force (GHF), make up the Ghanaian Armed Forces (GAF) which is controlled by the Ghanaian Ministry of Defence (MoD). The nucleus of the Ghana Navy is the Gold Coast Naval Volunteer Force formed during World War II.
It was established by the colonial British administration to conduct seaward patrols to ensure that the coastal waters of the colony were free from mines. Following Ghana’s attainment of independent nationhood on 6 March 1957 from the UK, the country’s military was reorganized and expanded to meet its new challenges. A new volunteer force was raised in June 1959 with headquarters at Takoradi in the Western Region of Ghana.
The men were drawn from the existing Gold Coast Regiment of Infantry. They were under the command of British Royal Navy officers on secondment. On 29 July 1959, the Ghana Navy was established by an Act of Parliament. The force had two divisions based at Takoradi and Accra respectively.[1] On 1 May 1962, the British Navy formed the Royal Navy Element of the British Joint Services Training Team, thus changing the nature of its relationship with the Ghana Navy.
The first Chief of the Naval Staff was Captain D. A. Foreman, a retired British Naval Officer. He was granted a Presidential Commission as a Ghana naval officer in the rank of commodore.[2] In September 1961 Nkrumah terminated the employment of British officers in the armed forces: the first Ghanaian to become Chief of the Naval Staff was Rear Admiral David Animle Hansen, who was transferred from the Ghana army to head the navy.
On September 14 1990, the GNS Achimota was hit by NPFL artillery while on a fact-finding mission near Monrovia. As a result, 2 Ghanaian sailors and 3 Nigerian nurses were killed, and the Ghanaian Air Force retaliated with airstrikes.[3]
Table of Contents
Ghana Navy Rank structure
The GN officers in descending order of seniority: Admiral
- Vice-Admiral
- Rear-Admiral
- Commodore
- Captain
- Commander
- Lieutenant Commander
- Lieutenant
- Sub-Lieutenant
- Acting Sub-Lieutenant
Ratings
The GN ratings in descending order of seniority:
- Master Chief Petty Officer
- Fleet Chief Petty Officer
- Chief Petty Officer Class I
- Chief Petty Officer Class II
- Petty Officer Class I
- Petty Officer Class II
- Leading Seaman
- Able Seaman Class I
- Able Seaman Class II
- Ordinary Seaman