The seven fishermen who disappeared at sea for two weeks have been brought back to Ghana and received at the Tema Fishing Harbour after their canoe was found in Benin waters.
The men are Kofi Emmanuel, 32; Uncle Amoah, 45; Kwamena Nkum, 29; Kofi Aboagye, 36; Doboa, 35; Agya Badu, 42; and Kwamena Akyem, 40. They left Sekondi for Axim on October 9 on board a canoe called Second Chance when its outboard motor failed, leaving them to drift.
At a press briefing in Tema on Thursday, October 22, 2026, the Ghana Navy’s Director of Naval Training, Naval Captain Festus Osei-Brobbey, said the Fisheries Commission alerted the Navy on October 20 that the canoe had lost power and drifted through Togolese waters into Benin.
In response, the Navy deployed three ships and tasked its Special Boat Squadron, together with National Security and the Air Force, to carry out sea and air searches.
The Maritime Authority, Marine Police, Ports and Harbours Authority, National Signal Bureau, Fisheries Commission and the navies of Togo and Benin also joined the effort under the ECOWAS Integrated Maritime Strategy and the Yaoundé Architecture, with support from Zones E and F coordination centres and the French Embassy.
According to Capt. Osei-Brobbey, the Beninese Navy confirmed at 10:36 p.m. on October 21 that it had located the crew. With help from Togolese naval personnel and local Beninese fishers, they were rescued and handed over to Ghana Navy Ship Aflao at the Ghana-Togo sea boundary at 6:49 a.m. on October 22.
All seven were in good health and were given food and medical care on board.
Capt. Osei-Brobbey admitted the operation revealed logistical gaps, particularly in distress alerting, communication and night surveillance, and called for more high-speed boats, appropriate patrol vessels and long-endurance drones to improve future response.
Fisheries Commission Executive Director, Professor Benjamin Betey Campion, said the commission is reviewing bids for tracking and distress alert devices for fishers that will allow them to share their location and call for help at sea. He said the options are being assessed for effectiveness and affordability.
Kwamena Akyem, who led the crew, said they survived by praying and lightening the canoe by throwing their catch overboard. He thanked the governments of Ghana, Benin and Togo for the rescue.
The Maritime Authority and Navy provided food, water, toiletries and life jackets, while the Ports Authority arranged medical checks and accommodation before the fishermen returned to Sekondi.
7 missing Sekondi fishermen rescued after 12 days adrift; canoe drifted to Togo
