By Sumaila Ogbaje
Member States of Accra Initiative have agreed to operationalise a Multinational Joint Task Force within a month to tackle the spread of terrorism and other transnational organised crimes.
In a communique issued on Tuesday at the end of their meeting in Accra, Ghana, the members agreed to be innovative and provide operational tools to tackle the security challenges.
The Accra Initiative countries are Benin Republic, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Togo.
They “expressed their deep concern for the dramatic expansion of terrorism, violent extremism, transnational organised crime and transhumance consequences in their countries.
“Expressed their sympathy and full support to the Member States and their populations who face violent extremism and terrorism on a daily basis.
“Took note of the commitments by partners to support the Accra Initiative in the fight against terrorism in the sub-region.
“Reaffirmed their commitment to mobilise the necessary indigenous resources to operationalise within a month, the Multinational Joint Task Force of the Accra Initiative (MNJTF/AI).”
The summit recommended that concrete actions, including fundraising, be taken to support the countries severely affected by terrorism.
The Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the Accra Initiative was held under the chairmanship of President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana.
The summit agreed to operationalise the MNJTF which would conduct Operation Enhanced Koudanlgou, after it received briefing from the Chief of Defence Staff of Ghana, Vice Adm. Seth Amoama.
The communique also said that the summit took note of the will of Nigeria to designate representatives to the Headquarters of MNJTF/AI.
“At the end of the Summit, the Heads of State and Government welcomed the idea of organising an International Conference on the Accra Initiative and are pleased with the good progress of the activities.
“They took note of the report of the activities of the Ministers of the Member States of the Accra Initiative of Nov. 21 in Accra
“They congratulated the Ministers of the Member States of the Accra Initiative and the Non-State Actors for the quality of the conclusions of their work.
“Expressed their deep appreciation to the European Union for its support in making the International Conference on the Accra Initiative possible.”
The communique also said that they expressed deep appreciation to President Akufo-Addo, for his leadership in making the summit a success.
The summit was attended by Heads of Member States of the Accra Initiative while President Muhammadu Buhari was represented by the National Security Adviser (NSA), retired Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno. (NAN)
