By Benjamin Adamafio Commey, GNA
Accra, Oct. 8, GNA – The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has urged the relevant authorities to strengthen security measures along Ghana’s southern and coastal borders to address emerging threats.
The Commission said often, security interventions were focused on the northern borders of the country, leaving the southern and coastal ones with little or no attention.
It, however, warned that the southern and coastal borders were also increasingly becoming a hotspot for cross-border crimes, including violent extremism, narcotics and disinformation, urging holistic security interventions to curtail any unforeseen crimes.
Ms Kathleen Addy, the Commission’s Chairperson, made the call in Accra on Wednesday, in a speech read on her behalf at a national dialogue on sustaining post-election peace and strengthening community resilience against emerging security threats in southern border communities.
“Although Ghana’s security concerns have often been associated with the northern parts of the country, we must recognise that the southern and coastal borders are increasingly becoming hotspots for cross-border crimes, including violent extremism, narcotics and disinformation,” she said.
“We, therefore, need holistic, nationwide security interventions to prevent these emerging threats from escalating into unforeseen crimes.”
The dialogue, organised by the NCCE, in collaboration with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), brought together stakeholders, including security analysts, civil society organisations and development partners, to deliberate on measures to protect peace and strengthen resilience in vulnerable communities.
Ms Addy said Ghana’s reputation as a peaceful and stable democracy should not lead to complacency in safeguarding the country’s peace and security.
She said the successful conduct of the 2024 general election and the peaceful transfer of power demonstrated the maturity of Ghanaians and the resilience of the country’s democratic institutions.
However, “we cannot afford to take our peace and security for granted,” she said, emphasising the need for sustained civic engagement and preventive measures.
Strengthening border communities, she said, was essential to preventing criminal networks and extremist groups from exploiting vulnerabilities, while encouraging citizens to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities through the appropriate channels.
The NCCE Chairperson called for collaboration between state institutions, local authorities, security agencies, civil society organisations and residents to build resilient communities.
Major General Tim Ba-Taa-Banah, Director of the National Counterterrorism Fusion Centre, identified citizen complicity in criminal activities as one of the major threats to national security.
He said citizens who knowingly or inadvertently provided criminals with accommodation, transportation or other support could undermine the work of security agencies.
“The biggest threat is the enemy within. The complicity of the citizen when crime is about to be committed, when it is being conceived, when it is being planned, when it is about to be committed and when it is committed,” he said.
Major General Ba-Taa-Banah said Ghana’s geographical location and proximity to countries facing violent extremism and transnational organised crime required sustained vigilance.
“We aren’t an island. So, all the other threats that the countries around us face, we equally face them,” he said.
He urged citizens to report suspicious activities to security agencies or traditional authorities, stressing that chiefs and other community leaders remained important partners in maintaining peace.
He also called for sustained measures to control small arms and light weapons, including public education and initiatives to encourage the voluntary surrender of unlicensed weapons.
Madam Victoria Ama Asieduwaa, a Peace and Conflict Analyst at the National Centre for the Coordination of Early Warning and Response Mechanism, advocated the establishment of community peace structures involving chiefs, youth leaders, women’s groups and other stakeholders.
She said such structures could help communities identify warning signs early and communicate emerging threats to relevant national institutions before they escalated.
She warned that declining public trust in state institutions contributed to low levels of reporting and called for improved access to justice to restore confidence.
“We cannot secure the peace we so cherish without doing this,” she said, advocating a human-centred approach to early warning and conflict prevention.
Dr Mustapha Abdallah, a Senior Researcher at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), said strengthening border security should be complemented by addressing internal vulnerabilities that could make communities susceptible to violent extremism.
He identified unemployment, inequality, marginalisation and governance challenges as factors that had contributed to radicalisation and violent extremism in parts of the Sahel.
Dr Abdallah urged the authorities to look beyond physical border controls and address socioeconomic challenges, particularly in vulnerable communities along Ghana’s southern borders.
GNA
Edited by Agnes Boye-Doe
Reporter: Benjamin Adamafio Commey
Email: [email protected]