By Jerry Azanduna
Techiman, (BE/R) Oct. 12, GNA- Mrs Bertha Demennu, the Political and Public Affairs Officer at the Canadian High Commission in Accra, says national peace and stability are the collective responsibility of every Ghanaian.
Peace, she explained, was a human development factor, which ought to be prioritised, and advised Ghanaians to cherish and jealousy to preserve the prevailing national peace and social cohesion for development to thrive.
She said, “in any society where everybody is a watchdog, conscious of preserving peace and preventing intruders of peace, it develops faster”.
Mrs Demennu said this during a two-day meeting on violent extremism, attended by the youth in the Techiman Municipality of the Bono East Region.
The meeting was in line with a project dubbed “Dialogue on Preventing Violent Extremism, Terrorism and Vigilantism for Women and Youth”, being funded by the Canadian Fund for Local Initiative (CFLI) and implemented by the National Peace Council (NPC).
“We should not see the preservation of peace and security as a reserve and the business of few stakeholders, instead collective and shared responsibility”, Mrs Demennu said.
She urged Ghanaians to be watchful and help prevent terrorist attacks and violent extremism in the country, saying terrorist attacks on neighbouring countries threatened the peace of the nation.
Mr Frank Wilson Bodza, the Deputy Director in-charge of Conflict Management and Resolution at the NPC, said the project aimed to curb violent extremism in the country.
He said poor governance, vigilantism and illegal mining, poor environmental practices and poverty were all threats to national security.
Mr Ernest Ansah Lartey, the Head of Peace and Security Studies at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), said peace remained a major tool for national development and assured Ghanaians of the Centre’s commitment to collaborate with stakeholders to promote national peace and stability.
“The Centre is also collaborating with other partners, including the NPC, civil society actors, and other development partners to help sustain national peace,” he added.
GNA