Lasting peace in Africa cannot be built on “borrowed stability or conditional aid,” President John Dramani Mahama declared on Saturday, placing economic sovereignty and regional trade at the centre of the continent’s security strategy.
Presenting the 2026 State of Peace and Security in Africa Report at the Tana High-Level Forum on Security in Africa, President Mahama, who chairs the Tana Forum Board, warned that regional conflicts cannot be resolved without addressing the root causes of instability: economic marginalisation, unfair resource exploitation, and communities cut off from their wealth.
“True sovereignty is not simply having a seat at the United Nations or singing a national anthem,” Mahama said.
“It means having the power to govern our strategic resources, negotiate fair terms, and ensure that the wealth beneath our people’s feet puts food on their tables.”
The President argued that regional integration must go beyond simple commercial transactions, framing it as an indispensable security mechanism.
“When countries integrate their markets, they have more to gain from cooperation than conflict, making their neighbours more valuable as trading partners than as geopolitical adversaries,” he stated.
He outlined several priorities to build sustainable security: accelerating domestic value addition to natural resources, expanding intra-African trade, generating inclusive economic opportunities for youth and women, and increasing direct African financing for regional peacekeeping missions.
Turning to immediate security threats across West Africa, President Mahama urged open dialogue and continued engagement with the Sahelian states, specifically Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.
Assuring the African Union (AU) of Ghana’s proactive diplomatic role, he highlighted a new regional security architecture: the Sahel Gulf of Guinea Accord. Designed as a “coalition of the willing” to replace the Accra Initiative, the accord aims to restore critical multilateral defence cooperation.
“No border post can stop a threat that we refuse to discuss amongst ourselves,” President Mahama added.
Presidency
