On New Year's Day 1942, in company with the sloop HMS "Bridgewater" she escorted the 18 ships of Convoy WS-14 to South Africa from the U.K. with reinforcements for the Middle East. "Ceres" spent two months in the Persian Gulf, and then arrived at Simonstown for a three-month refit, where she was dry-docked. As with most of the ships of the 'C'-class, she was also fitted with six 20 mm single AA weapons to become an anti-aircraft cruiser. "Coventry", "Curacoa" and "Curlew" had already undergone conversion before the war, but the outbreak delayed "Ceres"' and "Cardiff's" conversions. She was then based at Aden and she also participated in the fall of Djibouti to the allied forces. She spent the rest of the year escorting convoys to Durban. She finally returned to home waters and her homeport of Devonport in October 1943. By now she had steamed over 235,000 miles in her career.