Jihadist Attacks: Security Analyst urges African countries to be vigilant

Mr Godson Bill Ocloo, the Executive Director, African Centre for Emergency Management and Human Security, has urged security agencies to enhance vigilant measures considering recent jihadist attacks in neighboring country, Togo.He said collaborative measures with other regional and international partners would be beneficial in combating terrorism and extremism within the subregion.Mr Ocloo, also a security analyst, made the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on the recent attack on a Togolese Military Base by the jihadist group, which killed 12 soldiers with several others sustaining varying degrees of injury.He said: 'Extremism and Jihadist attacks have plagued Africa and the Sub-Saharan Region, posing significant challenges to security and peace.'He mentioned that the surge of extremism in Africa could be attributed to various factors, including political instability, economic disparities, social grievances, and others which created a fertile ground for extremist groups to exploit the m arginalised population and spread their radical ideologies through violent means.Mr Ocloo added that Sub-Saharan countries such as Nigeria, Mali, Somalia, and Burkina Faso have been noted for extremist activities.'To address the root cause of such unrest, it is crucial to consider factors such as political instability, ethnic or religious tension, unemployment, poverty, and external influences,' he said.Mr Ocloo noted that jihadists and extremist attacks in African countries called for concerted efforts to address, and that Africa could only strive towards a more stable and resilient future if it understood the underlying drivers of extremism and adopted comprehensive strategies to address them.Other multi-faceted approaches, which required strengthening security capacities, promoting socio-economic development, enhancing regional cooperation, countering extremist propaganda, and addressing grievances through inclusive governance and dialogue should be considered, he said.He added that countries clo sed to volatile regions and porous borders posed a great security risk to the vulnerable who crossed borders to neighboring countries.However, he urged all to remain calm and trust the various security agencies across the African countries as they worked to prevent any further attack.Source: Ghana News Agency