Regional offices of the National Peace Council (NPC) have raised concerns over severe resource constraints hampering their ability to effectively promote peace and prevent conflicts across the country.
At a stakeholders’ engagement held in Tamale, the Executive Secretary of the Central Regional Peace Council, Dr. Charles Ohene-Amoah, revealed that many of the council’s operations have been crippled by chronic underfunding, lack of vehicles, and inadequate office accommodation — factors he said threaten to undermine the council’s mandate.
Dr. Ohene-Amoah lamented that, due to these challenges, the visibility of the Peace Council tends to peak only during election periods, leaving limited attention and resources for ongoing conflict prevention and peace education programmes throughout the year.
“Peacebuilding is not an event — it’s a continuous process,” he stressed. “Without adequate logistical and financial support, our officers at the regional and district levels cannot carry out sustained engagements in communities vulnerable to violence, extremism, and chieftaincy disputes.”
Rising Insecurity Demands Stronger Peace Infrastructure
The call for support comes amid growing concerns about rising incidents of violent extremism, youth radicalization, and chieftaincy conflicts in parts of the country, especially in northern Ghana.
Regional directors of the NPC — Mr. Paul Akornor of the Oti Region and Mr. Kennedy Attepo of the Savannah Region — echoed similar sentiments, noting that although their teams continue to engage communities and religious leaders on dialogue and peace education, their impact is often limited by a lack of essential resources.
“We are doing our best with what we have, but the reality is that peace work requires mobility, coordination, and sustained presence in communities. Without that, the risk of violence and extremism spreading becomes higher,” Mr. Akornor said.
Appeal for Government Commitment
The directors jointly appealed to the government, development partners, and civil society organisations to prioritise peacebuilding by allocating consistent funding and logistics to regional peace councils.
They also emphasised the need for collaborative approaches that would allow local peace actors to work more closely with security agencies and traditional authorities in addressing root causes of violence and preventing extremist infiltration.
Mr. Attepo added that long-term peace and stability depend not only on elections but also on continuous dialogue, civic education, and community resilience-building.
“Peace is not self-sustaining; it must be nurtured,” he said. “If we want to safeguard Ghana’s stability, then investing in peace must be seen as a national priority.”
The Peace Council’s renewed call highlights the urgent need for adequate institutional support to strengthen Ghana’s peace architecture — not only in response to crises but as a proactive safeguard for the nation’s long-term unity and security.
