The Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) KADA, a Landing Ship Transport (LST), arrived back in Lagos harbour Wednesday, 18 days after it transported crew and military equipment to Guinea Bissau for a peacekeeping operation.
NNS KADA, under the command of Navy Captain Reginald Adoki, departed from Lagos to Guinea Bissau on August 6, 2022, with the goal of disembarking military equipment for the Nigerian contingent participating in the ECOWAS Stabilization Support Mission in Guinea Bissau.
Economic West Africa (ECOWAS) established the Security Stabilization Mission in Guinea Bissau (ESSMGB) with a one-year renewable mandate to stabilise the country in response to the unrest in Guinea Bissau following the President of Guinea Bissau, President Umaro Sisoco Embalo's escape from a coup attempt in February 2022.
The ESSMGB is made up of soldiers from Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, and the Ivory Coast, each of which has a detachment in Guinea Bissau.
Basically, the three goals of the participating troops are to safeguard the government of Guinea-Bissau, help the armed forces of Guinea-Bissau stabilise the nation, and protect people.
Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo, the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), greeted the ship and crew at the Nigerian Navy Ship BEECROFT Jetty in Apapa, Lagos.
Represented by the Chief of Naval Safety and Standards, Rear Admiral Perry Onwuzulike, the CNS reiterated that NNS KADA’S voyage to and from Guinea Bissau to Lagos was its first national assignment after she arrived from the United Arab Emirates on May 27, 2022.
He said one of the roles of the Nigerian Navy is strategic sealift which NNS KADA performed commendably to support the ECOWAS mandate in line with Nigerian’s foreign policy objectives.
He also emphasised that there is no doubt that the Nigerian Navy would continue to leverage the sealift capability as it seeks further collaboration with Sister services.
He said: “It is pertinent to state that Nigerian maintains a contingent in Guinea Bissau, hence the equipment NNS KADA took to Guinea Bissau was for the Nigerian Contingent”.
He further emphasised that NNS KADA successfully performed her mission and is now back home, just as he also commended the Ship’s Company and urged them to prepare and be on standby for her next mission as exigency of service would permit.
The senior Naval officers that accompanied the representative of the Chief of the Naval Staff to receive NNS KADA were Rear Admiral Yakubu Wambai, the Flag Officer Commanding Western Naval Command; Rear Admiral Monday Unurhiere, Flag Officer Commanding Naval Training Command; Rear Admiral Kohath Levi, representative of the Flag Officer Commanding Naval Doctrine Command; and Rear Admiral Emmanuel Beckley, Admiral Superintendent Naval Ordinance Deport.
Others are Rear Admiral Olusola Oluwagbire, Director of Operations Naval Headquarters; Rear Admiral Samson Bura, Fleet Commander Western Fleet and other senior officers of the Western Naval Command.
With a capacity to carry over 250 passengers including 32 crew members and 16 embarked Special Forces, NNS KADA is currently the largest LST in the whole of Africa, which is designed for a range of duties including amphibious operations, strategic transport of equipment and troops, disaster relief, medical evacuation and humanitarian assistance.
It also has a helicopter deck and significant space to carry troops and tanks for ground forces on special mission.