Côte d’Ivoire’s armed forces held the TOUCAN 2026 military exercise at the Daloa Air Base on Wednesday, bringing together the army, air force, navy and special forces to strengthen their ability to plan and conduct joint operations during a crisis.

The exercise was organized by the Air Force on the instructions of Army General Lassina Doumbia, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces.

With a focus on air operations, the exercise placed military units in realistic operational scenarios designed to test and improve their ability to coordinate intelligence, support operations, deploy reinforcements, secure areas, intervene and conduct medical evacuations.

The exercise brought together Côte d’Ivoire’s land, air and maritime components, as well as the Special Forces, around a strategic objective: improving their capacity to plan, coordinate and conduct a joint response to a crisis situation.

The exercise was chaired by Major General Chérif Ousmane, Chief of Staff of the Army, who represented the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, General Lassina Doumbia, who was unable to attend because of official duties.

Also present were Major General Koffi N’Guessan Alfred, Chief of Staff of the Air Force; Brigadier General Tibe Bi Toussaint, Commander of the Special Forces; and several heads of divisions, bureaus and unit commanders.

Lieutenant Colonel Ouattara Katienna, Deputy Commander of the Abidjan Air Base and Head of Operational Resources, served as director of the exercise. He presented military authorities and members of the press with an overview of the key stages of the exercise and the elements needed to understand the operation.

According to the organizers, the exercise achieved the objectives that had been set.

Through TOUCAN 2026, Côte d’Ivoire’s armed forces are seeking to further strengthen interoperability among their different components and improve their operational capabilities. The exercise also aims to develop their ability to plan and conduct large-scale joint operations in line with the vision of the Chief of the General Staff.

Beyond training, the exercise is intended to strengthen coordination between the armed forces’ components, test common procedures and improve collective responsiveness to the demands of future operations.