Follow Us on Google
By Philip Nwosu
South Africa Navy said it would enhance its military cooperation with the Nigerian Navy.
The country’s Naval chief, Vice Admiral Mosiwa Hilongwane gave the indication during his visit to the Naval Dockyard Limited, Lagos at the weekend. He said the relationship between the two navies which dates back to the days after the death of apartheid would be strengthened following his visit.
Although he declined giving the details of the cooperation, Daily Sun learnt that the governments of Nigeria and South Africa had earlier agreed to strengthen ties in military relations in the area of joint operations, intelligence and resources aimed at building a large industrial complex that would dominate the continent’s defence, economy and technology.
Admiral Hlongwane who toured naval facilities in Lagos visited the Naval Dockyard Limited, a ship building facility of the Nigerian Navy, to see firsthand activities at its workshop. He had a closed door session with the Nigerian Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral Ibok Ibas.
He also visited the Naval Air Base in Ojo and the Joint Maritime Training Centre, another facility of the Nigerian Navy used for the training of Special Boat Service (SBS) unit of the Navy.
Admiral Hilongwane was later treated to a reception at the Western Naval Command where he had another private session with Admiral Ibas and the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Sylvanus Abbah.
The South African team rounded up the tour with a visit to the Naval Training Command where they were received by the Flag Officer Commanding Naval Training Command, Rear Admiral Obi Ofodile.
