Defence Minister Commissions €1.33m Intelligence Training Centre

Mr Dominic Nitiwul, the Defence Minister, has commissioned a 1.33 Million Euro Defence Intelligence Training Centre (DITC) of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), funded by the Government of Germany to enhance intelligence activities of the military.

The two-storey building block, which was funded through the German Armed Forces Technical Assistance Group (GAFTAG), started in 2003 when the Government of Ghana entered into a bilateral agreement with the Federal Republic of Germany to support the GAF as part of Germany‘s commitment to the ECOWAS Standby Force.

The DITC has a 60 seat auditorium for central lectures, 20 seat syndicate rooms, a research library, a language laboratory and offices for the Chief Instructor and his staff.

It also has a multi-purpose cyber office where real time information will be analysed as well as offices for the Strategic and Operational cells.

Mr Nitiwul said the operation of the new facility created enough space to accommodate the envisaged diverse roles of the Department as captured in the recently promulgated Charter of the Department of Defence Intelligence.

“This therefore makes the Training Centre an Important addition to the training of our operatives in the Intelligence agencies within the country and the sub-region,” he added.

He said there were plans to further equip the facility with the necessary infrastructure to serve its original purpose with the capacity to extend or share with sister West African countries.

He thanked the German government for the gesture and assured that the facility will be put to good use.

“The objectives for this immeasurable infrastructure support will be kept in focus and the benefits would be to our mutual advantage in ensuring a peaceful nation.

‘’A nation at peace with its neighbours and one that contributes its modest quota to make the sub-region a safer place to live in”, he said.

Mr Nitiwul said government was willing to continue with the bilateral arrangement between Germany and Ghana when the current Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) ends in 2020.

He said the GAF would continue to strengthen relations with its development partners, bilaterally and multilaterally.

Mr Christoph Retzlaff, the German Ambassador to Ghana, said the facility had shown that Germany and Ghana are together in a strong bond of friendship and common goal of striving for peace, security and stability, not only in their respective countries alone, but in the other parts of the world.

He commended Ghana for her immense contributions to Peace keeping Missions across the world and wished the users of facility success in addressing the challenges and issues of peace, security and stability in the future.

Under the Federal Republic of Germany Equipment Aid Programme for Foreign Armed Forces, an agreement was reached to assist the GAF equip a squadron of Engineers to effectively carry out the mandate for a construction Engineer Company of the ECOWAS Standby Force (ESF).

The agreement, which was signed in 2005, has evolved over the years with the renewal of two successive MOUs (2013-2016 and 2017-2022), aimed at carefully selected programmes and projects.

The projects did not stop with the Ghana Army Engineer Corps but has extended to other branches of the GAF.

Notable beneficiaries include the Electrical and Mechanical Engineering (EME) Corps, where the Base Workshop and the EME Technical Training School have received significant support.

Others are the Armed Forces Mechanical and Transport Training School, the Provost Marshal‘s Outfit and the Defence intelligence Department.

Source: GNA