Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Navy, Rear Admiral Issa Adam Yakubu, led a delegation of the Ghana Navy to Nigeria to participate in the 2023 Presidential fleet review held in honour of His Excellency, the President of Nigeria. The Fleet Review was held at Naval Dockyard Limited on Monday 22, 2023, in Lagos, Nigeria. The theme of the Review was "Fleet Readership for National Prosperity".
The Ghana Navy ship BLIKA also took part in the Fleet Review for the first time.
The Presidential Fleet Review is a traditional event where navies around the world pay tribute to their sovereign or heads of government. The Fleet Review involves the gathering of ships and maritime assets in a designated area to demonstrate loyalty and loyalty to the state.
The Review also provides an opportunity for the President to evaluate the readiness of the national and regional navies to meet their legal obligations in terms of maritime security, safety, and defence in a global and regional cooperative approach.
In his statement, the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice-Admiral Awwal Jubril Gambo, said, “This event marks a significant turning point in the history of the Nigerian navy, as it provides the Navy with unprecedented support in terms of Fleet Recapitalization, Infrastructural Development and Personnel Welfare, thereby enhancing morale and combat effectiveness.”
President Buhari said that to strengthen the maritime security operational efforts of the Nigerian Navy, additional vessels and several air assets have been approved, including two 76m high endurance offshore patrol vessels (HEPOVs) from Turkey and three 45m fast patrol boats (FPBs) from France, as well as two Augusta Westland Helicopters currently under construction.
The Fleet Review was also attended by a Landing Ship Transport (LST), Inshore Patrol Craft (IPC), 1 Augusta Westland GRN (Light Utility Helicopter), which formed part of the ships reviewed along the Lagos Channel. This formation was accompanied by the Ghana Navy Ship (GNS) BLIKA and the Italian Navy Ship (NNAV).
The Civil Society Network of Nigeria (CNS) expressed its gratitude to the Ghana Navy ship BLIKa and its crew for making the long journey from Sekondi. This was the second time in a short period of time that a Ghana Navy ship had sailed to Nigeria to participate in an exercise.
