The Ghana Military Academy (GMA) was established on 1 April, 1960 after years of reliance on foreign Military Academies to commission potential Ghanaian Officers for the Ghana Armed Forces.

The Academy grew out of the Regular Officers Special Training Schools (ROSTS) which was established at MATS, Teshie, in 1953. This School provided 6 months preparatory training for selected cadets from the British West African colonies:- namely Nigeria, The Gold Coast, Sierra Leone and the Gambia, prior to their being sent to the UK or other overseas countries for further officer training and commissioning.

Since its establishment, the Academy has produced over 3,500 Ghanaian Officers. Some have retired while the rest of us are now serving in various capacities in the Armed Forces and in the country as a whole. The Academy has also trained cadets from some sister African countries, notably Nigeria, Uganda, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, Benin, The Gambia, Togo and Guinea. The first commissioning ceremony was held on 30 September, 1961 for 35 officer cadets.

In 1961, the Ghana Government arranged for a joint Military Training Team from Britain and Canada to continue with the training until suitably experienced and qualified Ghanaians were ready to take over. This assistance ceased in 1974. From then, the Academy was manned entirely by Ghanaian Staff until 1 June 1984 when it was decided to modify the training syllabus in line with current trends in other renowned Military Academies.

At the invitation of the Ghana Government, the British Government seconded one officer at a time for a duty tour of 2 years to assist the Ghanaian Staff to implement the revised course syllabus for the Regular Officer Training Programme. The last of the officers of the British Military Assistance Team (BMAT) left in December, 1994 to bring the 10 - year training assistance to an end.

The year 2010 marked a major watershed in the history of Ghana Military Academy when it celebrated its Golden Jubilee Anniversary. Various events were undertaken to mark the occasion and these ware climaxed with a Golden Jubilee Anniversary Parade which was reviewed by HE Prof JEA Mills, President and C-in C of the Ghana Armed Forces. Among the dignitaries who graced the occasion were 3 former Heads of State – Presidents Yakubu Gowon and Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria and President JJ Rawlings of Ghana, all Alumni members.

Another significant development has been the upward revision of the educational qualification for entry into the Academy from the minimum of Senior High School certificate to a minimum of a first degree.

GMA continues to run 2 courses, namely the Regular Career Course (RCC) and the Short Service Commission/Special Duties Course (SSC/SD). The duration of the training has however, been reviewed from 22 months to 15 months for RCC and from 8 months to 6 months for SSC/SD in consonance with the above policy change. The Special Medical Intake (SMI) is run occasionally to address the shortfalls in the strength of the Ghana Armed Forces Medical Services.

The Regular Career Course. The Regular Course is divided into 2 parts. These are the Standard Military Course (SMC) which is for a period 4 months and the Regular Career Course covering a period of 11 months. The Regular Course therefore runs for a total of 15 months. The course now usually starts at the beginning of May and ends in August the following year.

The Short Service and Special Duties Course. The Short Service Commission and Special Duties Course is 6 months course run for direct entry professionals and servicemen whose services are required by the Armed Forces as specialist officers. The course leads to a Short Service/Special Duties Commission into the Armed Forces. With the revised training regime, the course usually starts in February and ends in August the same year.

The Regular Course is tri-service during the SMC phase. The Army, Naval and Air Force Cadets continue with their appropriate special service training here in GMA after this phase. The Regular Career Course training includes 2 weeks of jungle training at the Jungle Warfare School at Achiase in the Eastern Region. The Cadets also undertake a week of mountaineering at Amedzofe in the Volta Region. All graduating cadets of the Regular Course are granted Regular Commission into the Ghana Armed Forces.

The Regular Course is tri-service during the SMC phase. The Army, Naval and Air Force Cadets continue with their appropriate special service training here in GMA after this phase. The Regular Career Course training includes 2 weeks of jungle training at the Jungle Warfare School at Achiase in the Eastern Region. The Cadets also undertake a week of mountaineering at Amedzofe in the Volta Region. All graduating cadets of the Regular Course are granted Regular Commission into the Ghana Armed Forces.

The Regular Course is tri-service during the SMC phase. The Army, Naval and Air Force Cadets continue with their appropriate special service training here in GMA after this phase. The Regular Career Course training includes 2 weeks of jungle training at the Jungle Warfare School at Achiase in the Eastern Region. The Cadets also undertake a week of mountaineering at Amedzofe in the Volta Region. All graduating cadets of the Regular Course are granted Regular Commission into the Ghana Armed Forces.

The Regular Course is tri-service during the SMC phase. The Army, Naval and Air Force Cadets continue with their appropriate special service training here in GMA after this phase. The Regular Career Course training includes 2 weeks of jungle training at the Jungle Warfare School at Achiase in the Eastern Region. The Cadets also undertake a week of mountaineering at Amedzofe in the Volta Region. All graduating cadets of the Regular Course are granted Regular Commission into the Ghana Armed Forces.