Ghana Military - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Military and security forces

Ghana Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force (2022)

Military expenditures

0.5% of GDP (2021 est.)

0.4% of GDP (2020 est.)

0.4% of GDP (2019 est.) (approximately $360 million)

0.3% of GDP (2018 est.) (approximately $330 million)

0.3% of GDP (2017 est.) (approximately $300 million)

Military and security service personnel strengths

approximately 14,000 active personnel (10,000 Army; 2,000 Navy; 2,000 Air Force) (2022)

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

the inventory of the Ghana Armed Forces is a mix of Russian, Chinese, and Western equipment; since 2010, China has been the leading supplier of arms (2022)

Military service age and obligation

18-26 years of age for voluntary military service, with basic education certificate; no conscription (2022)

Military deployments

140 Mali (MINUSMA); 875 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 725 (plus about 275 police) South Sudan (UNMISS); 650 Sudan (UNISFA) (May 2022)

note: since sending a contingent of troops to the Congo in 1960, the military has been a regular contributor to African- and UN-sponsored peacekeeping missions

Military - note

the military of Ghana traces its origins to the Gold Coast Constabulary that was established in 1879 and renamed the Gold Coast Regiment in 1901; the Gold Coast Regiment was part of the West African Frontier Force (WAFF), a multi-regiment force formed by the British colonial office in 1900 to garrison the West African colonies of Gold Coast (Ghana), Nigeria (Lagos and the protectorates of Northern and Southern Nigeria), Sierra Leone, and Gambia; the WAFF served with distinction in both East and West Africa during World War I; in 1928, it received royal recognition and was re-named the Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF); the RWAFF went on to serve in World War II as part of the British 81^st and 82^nd (West African) divisions in the East Africa and Burma campaigns; following independence in 1957, the Gold Coast Regiment formed the basis for the new Ghanaian Army

as of 2022, the primary missions for the Ghanaian military included assisting other security services with internal security and patrolling the country’s economic exclusion zone, which has led to efforts to expand the Navy’s capabilities in recent years; in 2022, Ghana beefed up its military presence in the north of the country against threats from the terrorist organization Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), a coalition of al-Qa'ida linked militant groups, which has conducted attacks in the neighboring countries of Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, and Togo

Maritime threats

the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial and offshore waters in the Niger Delta and Gulf of Guinea remain a very high risk for piracy and armed robbery of ships; in 2021, there were 34 reported incidents of piracy and armed robbery at sea in the Gulf of Guinea region; although a significant decrease from the total number of 81 incidents in 2020, it included the one hijacking and three of five ships fired upon worldwide; while boarding and attempted boarding to steal valuables from ships and crews are the most common types of incidents, almost a third of all incidents involve a hijacking and/or kidnapping; in 2021, 57 crew members were kidnapped in seven separate incidents in the Gulf of Guinea, representing 100% of kidnappings worldwide; Nigerian pirates in particular are well armed and very aggressive, operating as far as 200 nm offshore; the Maritime Administration of the US Department of Transportation has issued a Maritime Advisory (2022-001 - Gulf of Guinea-Piracy/Armed Robbery/Kidnapping for Ransom) effective 4 January 2022, which states in part, "Piracy, armed robbery, and kidnapping for ransom continue to serve as significant threats to US-flagged vessels transiting or operating in the Gulf of Guinea"

NOTE: The information regarding Ghana on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Ghana 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Ghana 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.