The president of the Republic of Ghana, H.E Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has called on all African countries to collaborate with international bodies in tackling terrorism.
Speaking at the opening of a high-level conference on the fight against terrorism organized by the European Union in Accra, President Akufo-Addo suggested there was a need for the sub-region to work collectively with international bodies to fight violent extremism.
The Accra initiative conference aims to prevent frequent attacks on civilian governments by the military or terrorists from the Sahel to West African borders.
The incumbent government has expressed its interest in fighting against terrorism in the country.
The executive meeting was attended by distinguished guests like the president of the Republic of Benin, Patrice Guillaume Athanase Talon, President of Togo, Faure Gnassingbé, the Prime Minister of Côte d’Ivoire, Patrick Achi, President of ECOWAS Commission, Jean-Claude Kassi Brou and others.
The president expressed gratitude to the president of the European Council, Charles Michel for organizing such a consultative meeting.
“The Accra Initiative was formed in 2017 and it constitutes five-member states namely Ghana, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, and Togo but other countries like Mali and Niger will be joining soon”, as indicated by President Akufo-Addo.
At the meeting, President Akufo-Addo stated that the aforementioned states are well-equipped and united in tackling terrorism attacks in member countries.
According to president Akufo-Addo, “it is important to stress that the Accra Initiative operates on the principles of complementarity in ensuring that the vision and mission are consistent with the counter framework of the UN, AU, and ECOWAS”.
Moreover, the meeting was also organized purposely to suggest alternative ways by which the member states of the Accra Initiative can continue to strengthen their mechanisms in preventing terrorist attacks in other countries.