The Sierra Leone Navy on 29th October 2026 hosted the launch of the 2026 edition of the Grand African NEMO (GANO), an annual multinational maritime security exercise aimed at strengthening regional cooperation and enhancing maritime safety and security across West and Central African coastal states. GANO 26 is the 9th iteration of this annual multinational maritime event organised for the Gulf of Guinea nations.
Grand African NEMO is co-organized and sponsored by France’s Command for the Atlantic (CECLANT) and coordinated by the Yaoundé Maritime Security Architecture and the French Navy. The event brings together 19 African navies/coastguards, including Sierra Leone, and seven international partner navies with their sea-going assets. The exercise provides a platform for participating navies and coast guards to improve operational coordination, strengthen information sharing, and develop effective responses to maritime security threats.
The exercise focuses on combating maritime crimes, including illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, piracy, armed robbery at sea, narcotrafficking, human trafficking, and arms/goods smuggling. It also tests participants’ capabilities in search and rescue operations, maritime pollution control, and the enforcement of regulations aimed at protecting the marine environment.
The 2026 exercise will be conducted in three phases: the National Phase, Zonal Phase and Inter-Zonal Phase. These phases are designed to enhance individual national preparedness while promoting coordinated responses among participating countries to address shared maritime security challenges. The exercise has commenced today Thursday, 29 October 2026, and will conclude on Friday, 6 November 2026. During this period, Zone F with its members including Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire will engage in coordinated activities designed to strengthen interoperability, improve communication, and enhance collective responses to incidents within the maritime domain.
For Sierra Leone, GANO26 brought together various relevant national maritime security agencies including Sierra Leone Navy, Sierra Leone Marine Police, Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources (MFMR), Sierra Leone Maritime Administration (SLMA), Sierra Leone Ports and Harbours Authority (SLPHA), Transnational Organised Crime Unit (TOCU), Immigration department, National Revenue Authority/Customs (NRA), and the Office of National Security under the framework of interagency collaboration and coordination to execute developed exercise scenarios including vessel tracking, IUU fishing, Illegal Migration, Armed sea robbery and Piracy, Counternarcotics, Search and Rescue, and Illegal Smuggling.
The launch was graced on behalf of the Chief Naval Staff, by Naval Captain Abdul Karim Dumbuya, Commandant Western Naval Command of the Sierra Leone Navy, whose presence underscored Sierra Leone’s participation in the regional efforts to promote maritime safety and security.