By: Enock Ankomah
The Government of Ghana, through the National Security Council Secretariat, has called for stronger collaboration among government institutions, development partners, non-governmental organisations and other stakeholders to address farmer-herder conflicts and regulate transhumance in the country.
The call was made by the Director of the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Major General Timothy Tifucro Ba-Taa-Banah, who spoke on behalf of the National Security Coordinator at a national workshop held in Accra.
The workshop brought together key stakeholders to deliberate on challenges associated with livestock movement, competition over land and water resources, and farmer-herder tensions, particularly in northern Ghana.
With support from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), district-level by-laws have been developed to regulate livestock movement and provide mechanisms for resolving farmer-herder disputes, especially in the Upper West Region.
The Transhumance Tracking Tool has also identified 17 major livestock movement corridors, including key pastoral infrastructure such as water points, livestock markets, rest areas and grazing sites.
Major General Ba-Taa-Banah called for a unified approach to making the movement of herdsmen and their livestock into Ghana more structured and officially regulated.
He said the National Security Council remains committed to improving systems to safeguard and stabilise Ghana’s peace and security, stressing that the active involvement of all relevant stakeholders is critical to achieving lasting peace and peaceful coexistence between farming and pastoralist communities.
