GHANA ARMED FORCES COMMAND AND STAFF COLLEGE HOSTS FRENCH DELEGATION
A delegation from the French Embassy in Ghana, led by the French Defence Attaché, Colonel Gregory Madelin paid a courtesy call on the Commandant of the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (GAFCSC), Major General Jackson Wonje.
The visit took place on Wednesday, 25 February 2026, at the College in Teshie, and formed part of ongoing efforts to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation between Ghana and France. Accompanying the Defence Attaché was Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Surville, Course Director at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC).
The visit sought to formally introduce Colonel Madelin as the first permanent French Defence Attaché to Ghana, reinforce existing defence ties, and familiarize the delegation with the College’s PhD programme and broader academic offerings.
Welcoming the delegation, Maj Gen Jackson Wonje expressed appreciation for the visit, describing it as timely and significant in deepening collaboration in military education, research, and strategic-level training.
The Commandant underscored the importance of enhancing French language capacity within the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), noting Ghana’s strategic location within a predominantly Francophone sub-region. He indicated that the establishment of a French Language Centre at the College would greatly benefit allied students from Francophone countries and strengthen regional interoperability.
Maj Gen Wonje highlighted terrorism as a shared and transnational threat confronting both Ghana and France. He noted that in response to evolving regional security dynamics, the College has introduced a Counterterrorism course to equip officers with the requisite knowledge and strategic insight to address contemporary threats.
In his remarks, Col Gregory Madelin reaffirmed France’s commitment to strengthening defence cooperation with Ghana, both locally and through strategic engagements in Paris.
He stated that his mandate includes working closely with the Ghana Armed Forces in the areas of education, training, and operational capacity development for officers and non-commissioned officers. He referenced existing collaboration with institutions such as KAIPTC and the Ghana Military Academy.
Col Madelin further expressed interest in deepening cooperation between Francophone and Anglophone military institutions within the ECOWAS sub-region, particularly in the face of prevailing terrorist threats. He noted ongoing collaboration with the International Counterterrorism Academy in Abidjan and other research institutions to foster linkages with the College’s PhD programme, including support for language proficiency development to meet academic standards.
The French Defence Attaché emphasized the need to strengthen French language training within the GAF, proposing structured and possibly mandatory French instruction for cadets at the Academy as part of a long-term capacity-building strategy.
He also indicated interest in exploring academic equivalencies between institutions and extended a formal invitation to the Commandant to participate in future engagements, including the Paris Forum.
The visit reaffirmed the strong and growing defence partnership between Ghana and France, particularly in the areas of professional military education, counterterrorism, and regional security cooperation.
By Akuamoah-Boateng Sarah