The United Nations Secretary-General, Mr Ban Ki-Moon, on Tuesday 11 December 2012, appointed Maj Gen Dela Johnson Sakyi as the Force Commander (FC) of the United Nation Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS). He succeeds Maj Gen Moses Bisong Obi of Nigeria, who completed his assignment on 18 November 2012.

Gen Sakyi has 34 years of military command and staff experience at national and international levels. Until his appointment, Maj Gen Sakyi was the Assistant Commandant of the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (GAFCSC), Junior Division, having served previously as Commander of the Army Combat Training School (ACTS).

Between 1979 and 2011, Maj Gen Sakyi held command and staff positions from platoon to brigade level in the Ghana Armed Forces.

Maj Gen Sakyi served with the United Nations Operations in Cote D’Ivoire (UNOCI) as the Abidjan Sector Commander in 2008. He has also served in different capacities in the Ghana Contingent in several peacekeeping missions, namely the Second United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF II) in 1979; the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in 1986 and 1993; the United Nations Protection Force in Former Yugoslavia (UNPFOR) in 1995 and the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) in both Liberia and Sierra Leone from 1998 to 1999. He has also served with the United Nations Organisation Mission in Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) from 2002 to 2003.

The new Force Commander holds a Bachelor of Science Degree (Honours) in Public Administration from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), a graduate certificate from the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College, a certificate of Army High Command Course now the Army Command College, Nanjing, China and a certificate in ECOWAS Senior Mission Leaders from the Course Nation Defence College, Abuja, Nigeria.

Maj Gen DJ Sakyi was born in 1954. He is married and has three children.

Meanwhile Major General Sakyi together with the Chief of Defense Staff and the Defense Minister visited President Mahama to ask for his blessings.

President Mahama congratulated Maj Gen Sakyi for his new position and challenge and wished him well.

He assumes office on Saturday.