President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Wednesday presented 40 Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC’s) to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) to help secure the country’s territorial integrity.

Manufactured in Turkey, the second-generation state-of-the-art Cobra armoured tactical vehicles, which is in deployment in more than 15 countries worldwide, would be operated for a wide range of missions, including counterterrorism and counter-insurgency operations.

At a short ceremony at the Gondar Barracks at Burma Camp in Accra, President Akufo-Addo said the presentation was in fulfilment of the promise he made in his first term in office to resource and modernize the armed forces to carry out their mandate effectively.

He said the robust and versatile Cobra II vehicles would help contain the security threats in the country’s northern border, as well as provide the necessary protection for the Western and Easter frontiers.

The Government has from 2017 been addressing the logistical and welfare needs of the GAF, providing some 33 Otokar Cobra armoured personnel carriers, 41 assorted Toyota multi-purpose vehicles, water tankers, a recovery truck, a refrigeration van, and number of utility vehicles.

It has also upgraded old and constructed new housing units for troops.

The President commended the officers and men of the armed forces for the work they were doing to protect the territorial integrity and stability of Ghana.

He lauded their outstanding performance in the recent “Operation Peace Trail” that provided security for the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections, and also hailed the servicemen for their continued commitment to ongoing operations intended to create a secure and peaceful atmosphere at the North-Western, Northern and North-Eastern borders and to contain secessionist activities along the eastern frontiers.

President Akufo-Addo urged the military to continue to collaborate with the National Security, Interior and Foreign Affairs ministries, the Ghana Revenue Authority, as well as all relevant stakeholders to ensure “the country retains a robust disposition that would deter potential aggressors who may attempt to derail the political and social and economic gains we have chalked so far.”

He assured that the government would continue to address their logistical constraints and emphasized the need for the forces to pay attention to the maintenance of the vehicles provided them.