PROGRAMS AND EVENTS

US Navy Conducts Security Training for Nigeria, 11 Other African Countries

Date: November 20, 2007
Venue: Nigeria

APS crew train African sailors on damage control techniques and equipment. Photo credits - Elizabeth Merriam | Full size

US Naval ship USS Fort McHenry conducted Theater Security Cooperation (TSC) activities for 40 naval officers drawn from countries of the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) region.  The USS McHenry is currently on a 180-day deployment exercise along the West African Gulf Coast.  The hands-on training program is conducted onboard the ship while it is at sea.

Personnel participating in the training program consisted of Naval and Coast Guard non commissioned officers and junior officers from Nigeria, Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sao Tome and Togo.

Under the familiarization program, participants learned navigation, damage control, ship handling and small boat operations.  Other areas of training included leadership, maritime and interdiction operations, engineering repair and maintenance.

Captain Steve Martinez, Bilateral Affairs Officer, Office of Defense Cooperation US Embassy, Abuja, said that the Africa Partnership Station (APS) program offers the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) countries the opportunity to participate in training at sea under actual operational conditions.  The program will help them to increase their maritime security and safety capabilities and improve their ability to provide security in their respective territorial waters.  APS will both strengthen US relationships with the GoG countries and help to improve maritime security and safety in the GoG.