By Philip Tengzu
Wa, (UW/R), June 26, GNA – The Upper West Regional Multi-Stakeholder Peace and Security Conference aimed to build consensus among the district and regional level stakeholders and peace and security experts to address insecurity at the local and regional levels is underway in Wa.
The Conference on the theme: “Building Sustainable Peace and Security, a Shared Responsibility – Leveraging Local Partnership”, was also to deepen cooperation and collaboration among local actors and discuss the role of women in promoting peace and security in Ghana and the Upper West Region in particular.
The Community Development Alliance (CDA) organised the conference in collaboration with the Regional Network of Women in Peacebuilding (RENEW), a network of women peace and security advocates in the Upper West Region, with support from the USAID/OTI Littorals Regional Initiative (LRI) programme.
Speaking at the opening of the conference, Mr Salifu Issifu Kanton, the Executive Director of CDA, stated that the conference would enable women to forge relationships with the secu
“For me, women are one of the groups that we can rely on to achieve lasting peace and that is why this conference seeks to highlight the role of women in peacebuilding in the northern part of Ghana”, he stated.
He observed that peace was a “priceless commodity”, without which a society could not move on smoothly.
Mr Kanton explained that promoting peace and security in the country was a collective responsibility of all “particularly that we are inching towards an election, a major election.”
“So, if we can only give women a voice, and not leave them behind and give them a chance to play a role in the peace and security architecture of our country, we believe our country will be safer,” the CDA Director added.
He also stressed the need for a shift from what he described as “policing for the people” to “policing with the people” where the people took responsibility of their security and were empowered to support the security agencies with information on security issues in their localities.
Mr Kanton emphasised that effective collaboration between stakeholders and the involvement of women in the peace campaign would help ensure that this year’s election was incident-free.
Hajia Rabiatu Musah, a member of the RENEW in the Lawra Municipality, indicated that through the RENEW, women in Lawra had become peace ambassadors within their families and the communities.
She said advocating peace began with the individual by ensuring peace within himself or herself and that women were now peacemakers in their homes with their husbands and children.
“We are boldly out, preaching peace. Without peace, there will not be any development. So, we are educating our youth to desist from violence”, Hajia Musah said.
She indicated that the peace campaign would continue even after the 2024 general election to ensure their communities were free from violent acts to help propel development.
Over one hundred peace and security stakeholders, including members of RENEW across the region, including the Fulbe community, representatives of the Ghana Police and Immigration Services, Regional Coordinating Council, Regional House of Chiefs, National Commission for Civic Education, Peace and Security Think Thanks and other peace and security centred Civil Society Organisations among others attended the conference.
GNA