Lieutenant General BK Onwona enlisted into the Ghana Military Academy in
November 1985 and was commissioned on 14th August 1987 as part of
Regular Career Course 27. On commission as a Second Lieutenant, he was
posted to the Field Engineer Regiment as a Troop Commander.
He is currently the Chief of the Army Staff.
Prior to this appointment, Lieutenant General BK Onwona had served in
various capacities in the Ghana Armed Forces throughout his sterling
Military Career. These include Adjutant, Field Engineer Regiment,
Adjutant, 48 Engineer Regiment, Adjutant, Engineer Training School,
Officer Commanding, 48 Engineer Regiment and Instructor at the Ghana
Military Academy. He also served as the Second-in-Command of the 48
Engineer Regiment from June 2004 – January 2006. He served as a
Directing Staff at the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College from
2006 – 2008 and again from 2009 – 2012, Directing Staff at the Command
and Staff College, Jaji – Kaduna, Nigeria from 2012 – 2014 and returned
to the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (Senior Division)
where he served as the Chief Instructor from 2014 – 2015.
Additionally, he served as the Director Lands Operations at the General
Headquarters Department of Joint Operations
before being seconded to the Rwanda Armed
Forces Command and Staff College as Director of Studies from 2015 –
2017. In Jan 2017, he was appointed as Aide-de-Camp to the former
President of the Republic of Ghana, HE Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo and
served in this capacity until January 2023 when he was promoted to the
rank of Major General and appointed as the Commandant of the Training
and Doctrine Command, a position he held until October 2023 when he took
over as the Commandant of the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff
College. On the 24th of Jan 24, he was appointed as the Chief of the
Army Staff and subsequently took over Command on the 31st of Jan 24. He
was promoted to the enviable and highly coveted rank of Lieutenant
General on Fri 3 Jan 2025.
Lieutenant General Onwona has completed all career progression courses
commensurate with his rank. These include, the Young Officers’ Course at the
Army Combat Training School, Junior Staff Course at the Ghana Armed Forces
Command and Staff College, Combat Team Commanders’ Course at the Army Combat
Training School and Senior Staff Course at the Ghana Armed Forces Command
and Staff College. Other courses include, Public and Non-Public Funds
Accounting Course at the Forces Pay Regiment, Military Law Course, Engineer
Troop Commanders’ Course at the Royal School of Engineering, United Kingdom,
General Staff Training Course in Germany and the Combined Arms Staff
Training Course in the United Kingdom
He has vast International Peace Keeping experience. He served as Troop
Commander, GHANBATT 32 on United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
Mission, Troop Commander, GHANBATT 4 on the Economic Community Of West
African States (ECOWAS) Ceasefire Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) Mission in
Liberia, Troop Commander, GHANBATT 1 on the United Nations Transitional
Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) Mission, Company Commander, GHANBATT 13 again
on ECOMOG, and Deputy Commanding Officer/ Operations Officer, GHANBATT 9, on
the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). He also served as a Staff Officer with the
UNIFIL in 2004, a Military Observer in the United Nations Assistance Mission
for Rwanda (UNAMIR) from 1994 - 1996 and Military Observer on MONUSCO from
March 2008 – March 2009 as Deputy Force Training Officer.
His civil qualifications include, an International Diploma in Logistics and
Transport from the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, a Master
of Arts in International Affairs from the University of Ghana - Legon and a
Postgraduate Diploma in Public Administration from the Ghana Institute of
Management and Public Administration.
Lieutenant General Onwona is happily married with 2 children. He enjoys
reading, watching the news, classical music, basketball and hockey.
