Increasing violence in Togo by extremists has stoked fears that neighboring Ghana might be the next coastal West African country in the terrorist groups’ crosshairs.
The Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) militant coalition claimed responsibility for a July 20 attack on Togolese Army forces in Kpankankandi, near the border with Burkina Faso.
More than 1,000 fighters attacked a Togolese Army barracks, killing at least 12 Soldiers, destroying one armored vehicle, and making off with two motorcycles, dozens of weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition, according to Nigeria-based security analyst Zagazola Makama.
About 70 kilometers to the west, Ghanaians anxiously wondered what their country can do to protect against a similar attack.
“The attack in Togo has reinforced our longstanding fear about the jihadist activities in neighboring countries, particularly Burkina Faso, and it is a great source of worry for us, the monitors of jihadist movements in the sub-region,” Eliasu Tanko, a local journalist who monitors extremism in and around Ghana’s Upper East region, told The Africa Report magazine.
Thousands of terrified Togolese in Kpendjal, the farthest northeastern prefecture that contains Kpankankandi village, have been moving west toward Dapaong, the largest city in the north, and could make their way to Ghana, where Togolese and Burkinabe alike have found shelter at the Sapelliga refugee camp.
More than 150 people, including security forces, have been killed in northern Togo since November 2021, according to Makama. JNIM, an affiliate of al-Qaida, and other extremist militant groups have taken over more than half of Bukina Faso and have long sought to expand into the bountiful coastal countries of West Africa.
Adib Saani, executive director of the Ghana-based Jatikay Centre for Human Security and Peace Building, has a theory of why his country has yet to be attacked.
“What has happened in Togo is concerning but not surprising because extremists have been attacking northern Togo for a while and the situation is worse with the political turmoil there,” he told The Africa Report.
“The only thing keeping us safe from the terrorists is not their inability to attack but their lack of interest, because Ghana remains a major logistics hub for them.”
“If the insurgents attack Ghana, it would become much harder for them to use Ghana as a safe haven,” peace and security activist Clement Aapengnuo told Foreign Policy magazine. “At this point, Ghana is more useful stable.”
Tanko said Ghana also provides outlets for selling and smuggling goods and livestock.
“Some also have very large families settled in Ghana, and so they wouldn’t want to do anything that would bring much attention on them from the security forces here,” he said.
Tanko has called for Ghanaian leaders to address the socioeconomic challenges that are making locals more vulnerable to recruitment by terrorist groups.
“The government has to do more to be able to counter these threats,” he said. “More importantly, some of the challenges that these border communities are having with food, water, employment must also be addressed.”
Ghana’s security agencies have made few pronouncements about their approach to recent developments along the borders, but experts believe that communication with these communities is critical to thwarting terrorist incursions.
“We haven’t really done enough to counter the threats because our approach has been so one-sided, unsustainable and too militarized,” Saani said. “The communities along the borders must be sensitized so that they assist the military with relevant information to keep the borders safe.”
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