US, West African military chaplains open religious affairs symposium in Accra

Military chaplains and religious affairs personnel from the United States and ten African nations have gathered in Accra, Ghana, for the opening of the West African Religious Affairs Symposium on July 14, 2026. The three-day event is co-hosted by U.S.

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Africa Command and the Ghanaian Defense Force. Participating countries named in the source are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Togo.

U.S. military personnel are also attending through the State Partnership Programs of California, the District of Columbia, Michigan, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. AFRICOM Command Chaplain Kevin Forrester said spiritual resilience is a foundational pillar of force readiness.

He said the gathering is intended to exchange strategies on moral injury, theodicy, mutual religious support capacity and leadership. Subject matter experts from partner nation chaplaincies are leading exchanges on post-traumatic stress disorder, moral injury, ethics, enlisted leader development, ministry in combat and family care.

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