The Armed Forces of Gabon (), officially the Gabonese Defense and Security Forces (), is the national professional military of Gabon, divided into the Army, Air Force, Navy, and a National Gendarmerie, consisting of about 5,000 personnel. The armed forces includes a well-trained, well-equipped 1,800-member guard that provides security for the President of Gabon. Although the President of Gabon has authority over all of the armed forces, the Ministry of National Defense administers it.

Organizational structure

Army

The Gabonese Army () is the land component of the armed forces, specializing in infantry and mechanized reconnaissance. It was created on December 6, 1960, by decree of president Léon M'ba from non-commissioned officers who served in the French colonial army, mainly the 2nd company of the 21st BIMA. Following independence, Gabon signed defense agreements with France, mainly on technical assistance and training. Until June 1964, the title of Chief of Staff of the Gabonese Armed Forces was held by a senior French Army officer. In 1962 a detachment of the Auxiliary Women of the Gabonese Armed Forces (AFFAG), commanded by Lieutenant Ba Oumar at the military camp of Owendo, was created. President M'ba promoted the initiative following a visit to Tel Aviv, Israel, where he met female staff in its Defense Forces.

Order of battle Republican Guard Battalion (Libreville) 1 Light Armoured recon unit 3 Infantry companies 1 Artillery battery 1 Air Defence battery Airborne Regiment 1 Command company 1 Recon & Support company 3 Airborne companies 1 Light Armoured Recon Battalion 2 Armoured squads 1 Command & Logistics company Support Command Regiment 1 Artillery battery 1 Mortar battery 1 MRLS battery (8 Teruel MRL) 1 Engineer company Logistic units 7 Military Regions 7 Motorised infantry battalions (1 battalion for each region)

Air Force

Order of battle Fighter Squadron 1-02 Leyou at BA02 Franceville with: Mirage F-1AZ MB-326M Impala I Heavy Transport Squadron at BA01 Libreville with: C-130 Hercules CN-235 Ministerial Air Liaison Group ( or GLAM) at BA01 Libreville with: 1 Falcon-900EX 1 Gulfstream-III

Facilities BA01 Libreville BA02 Franceville Tchibanga

Navy

The Gabonese Navy () is the official maritime branch of the armed forces. It was created in December 1960 as part of the army, and only became an independent entity in 1983. The navy's core purpose is to monitor the country's coastal waters, including 800 km of coastline.

Headquarters Staff (Libreville) Port-Gentil Naval Base Mayumba Naval Base Port-Gentil Aviation Base Marine Rifle Battalion (since 1984)

Other security forces

National Gendarmerie The National Gendarmerie of Gabon (Gendarmerie nationale gabonaise) is the national police force of Gabon responsible for law enforcement in the country. It was formed on March 10, 1960, when Gabon, formerly French Equatorial Africa, gained its independence from France. It originated from Libreville Gendarmerie Detachment 1929, which was commanded by Governor General of French Equatorial Africa, Félix Eboue. The main tasks of the gendarmerie are to defend the country's borders, ensure public safety, and to enforce actions taken by judicial and government authorities. The National Gendarmerie is under the direct command of the President of Gabon.

Republican Guard The Gendarmerie is also in charge of the Republican Guard (). It is viewed as the most powerful and sophisticated of the security forces. It is primarily tasked with protecting the president and ensures regime stability.

Equipment

Small arms NameOriginTypeVariantNotes M16 rifleJones, Richard D. Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010. Jane's Information Group; 35 edition (January 27, 2009). . United States Assault rifle FN FAL Belgium Battle rifle FN CAL Belgium Assault rifle FN MAG Belgium General-purpose machine gun AK-47 Soviet Union Assault rifle AKM Soviet Union Assault rifle RPD Soviet Union Light machine gun FAMAS France Assault rifle Bullpup design MILAN France Anti-tank guided missile M40 United States Recoilless rifle M40A1

Armour NameOriginTypeIn Service Notes Armored fighting vehicles AML-60/AML-90 France/South Africa Reconnaissance vehicle 24 Including the South African Eland derivative. EE-3 Jararaca Brazil Reconnaissance vehicle12 EE-9 Cascavel Brazil Reconnaissance vehicle 14 ERC-90F4 Sagaie France Reconnaissance vehicle 6 RAM MK3 Israel Reconnaissance vehicle 7 Véhicule Blindé Léger France Reconnaissance vehicle 14 EE-11 Urutu Brazil Infantry fighting vehicle 12 Armed with 20 mm gun. VN-1 China Infantry fighting vehicle 5 Type 07P China Infantry fighting vehicle 14 V-150 Command United States Armoured personnel carrier 9 Bastion France Armoured personnel carrier 5 WZ-523 China Armoured personnel carrier 3 Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé France Armoured personnel carrier 5 VXB-170 France Armoured personnel carrier 12 Pandur I Austria Armoured personnel carrier 1 ZFB-05 China Armoured personnel carrier 3 Aravis France Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected 8 Matador South Africa Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected 24 Ashok Leyland MPV India Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected 34

Artillery NameOriginTypeIn Service Notes M101 United States 105 mm towed howitzer 4 Type 63 China 107 mm multiple rocket launcher 16 Type 90 China 122 mm multiple rocket launcher 4 Teruel Spain 140 mm multiple rocket launcher 8 MO-120-RT France 120 mm mortar 4

Air defense NameOriginTypeIn Service Notes ERC-20 France 20mm self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon 4 ZPU-4 Soviet Union 14.5mm towed anti-aircraft gun Unknown ZU-23-2 Soviet Union 23 mm towed anti-aircraft gun 24 M1939 Soviet Union 37 mm towed anti-aircraft gun 10 L/70 Sweden 40 mm towed anti-aircraft gun 3

Current inventory

Retired aircraft Previous aircraft operated were the CM.170 Magister, Embraer EMB 110, Fokker F28, Aérospatiale N 262, Reims C.337, and the Alouette II helicopter.

Naval equipment Vessel OriginTypeIn serviceNotes KershipFrance Offshore patrol 1 on order P400France Coastal patrol 3Trade Registers . Armstrade.sipri.org. Retrieved on 29 May 2015 BATRALFrance Landing craft 12 ordered, only one received

Ceremonial traditions In April 2001, then-Defense Minister Bongo visited China, during which he reviewed the PLA honor guard upon arrival, and proposed to his Chinese counterpart Chi Haotian that members of the battalion will go to Gabon to help set up and train professional ceremonial units in the Gabonese military. In March 2003, after just under three years, the Chinese Ministry of National Defense sent four officers led by Lieutenant Colonel Wang Yuanjing to Libreville by the end of November of that year, after which they stayed to train the Gabonese guard of honour for more than six months. The Principal Music Band of the Gabonese Defense Forces was created in 2010. It brings together elements of the Band of the National Gendarmerie, the Armed Forces and the Prytanée militaire de Libreville. It has a staff of 50 professional currently directed by Captain Jean-Baptiste Rabimbinongo. Its conductor, Lieutenant Léa Nzoufa Nze, was the first woman to conduct a military band to the Saumur International Festival of Military Bands. It takes part in many official ceremonies such as National Flag Day and the military parade marking the country's independence.

References