We cannot take territorial integrity of Ghana for granted - Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo says Ghana has instituted necessary measures to protect its territorial integrity against extremist activities.

However, he says, the country cannot afford to take its territorial integrity for granted. 

He said whereas many countries in the Sahel region have experienced terrorist attacks, Ghana is the only country the coastal region of West Africa that has not experienced such attacks.

That, he said, the government was doing everything possible to equip its security agencies to enable them to protect the country's territorial integrity.

President Akufo-Addo, who is delivering his message on the State of the Nation (SONA) to Parliament on Tuesday, February 27, 2024, said Ghana's security remains one of his government's top priorities. 

The SONA is in accordance with article 67 of the 1992 constitution that says the President should give the State of the Nation Address at the beginning and close of every Parliamentary Session.

The State of the Nation Address is an annual address to Parliament given by the President of the Republic covering economic, social and the financial state of the country.

President Akufo-Addo said it had taken deliberate policies by the government to keep the country's security intact, stressing that "the primary responsibility of the state to its citizens is to provide security for its nationals.

He said the government had paid critical attention to the welfare of the security agencies in the country, pointing out that the Ghana Armed Forces and the Police Service, for instance, had been given the needed logistics to enable them function as expected.

President Akufo-Addo, however, expressed worry over the current chieftaincy conflict in the Bawku area, noting that such incidents could easily open up the place for extremist groups to take advantage to compromise the security of the country.