Ghana has 48 officially approved entry points but more than 300 unauthorised crossing points, raising concerns about the country’s ability to effectively monitor its borders and prevent security threats.
The Minister for the Interior, Mubarak Mohammed Muntaka, said the situation required stronger cooperation with neighbouring countries, particularly through intelligence sharing and coordinated efforts to address security threats across the sub-region.
Speaking in an interview on Monday, October 12, 2026, Mr Muntaka stressed that countries must work together to tackle threats that extend beyond their national borders.
“You have to try and share intelligence; you have to work together,” he said.
His comments come as he maintains that Ghana’s overall security situation has improved compared with 2025, despite continuing concerns about ethnic conflicts, land disputes, illicit drugs and border vulnerabilities.
“I can assure you that we are safer today than we were when we took over power,” he said.
“Ghana is much safer even today than it was in 2025.”
The Minister acknowledged that crime remained a challenge but said the government and security agencies were working to protect the public and ensure that people could carry out their daily activities without fear.
“We are doing everything possible to ensure that you can go about your duties without necessarily having to be watching your back,” he stated.
When asked to provide figures to support his assessment of the security situation, Mr Muntaka cautioned against measuring progress solely by comparing the number of deaths recorded in different years.
“Well, I always tell people that I hate the situation when I say, oh, last year, 200 people died; this year, 190 died.”
Instead, he pointed to the reduction in the number of curfews imposed across the country. According to him, Ghana began 2025 with about 11 curfews and ended the year with approximately nine.
“As we speak now, we have only three more curfews,” he said.
Bawku records 150 days without gunshots
Mr Muntaka cited the situation in Bawku in the Upper East Region as an example of improved security, revealing that the area had experienced 150 days without gunfire.
“150 days, no gunshots,” he stated.
He said the relative calm had allowed authorities to ease restrictions, including setting the curfew between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. Residents had also been permitted to ride motorbikes between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.
“They were not riding motorbikes for more than five years. Today, they are riding motorbikes from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.,” he said.
The Minister recalled that violence linked to the Bawku conflict had previously spread to other communities, triggering retaliatory attacks and the burning of buses along highways.
“I mean, and I can bet you, these were periods that I could hardly sleep,” he said.
He explained that authorities had combined security operations with mediation and peacebuilding efforts to contain the conflict and restore calm.
Despite the improvements, Mr Muntaka said Ghana continued to face security threats, including ethnic conflicts, land disputes and illicit drug-related activities.
He stressed that effective border management was essential to addressing these challenges, particularly given the number of unauthorised crossing points across the country.
The Minister also underscored the need for neighbouring countries to strengthen intelligence sharing and coordinate their responses to transnational threats.
The disclosure highlights a major challenge for Ghana’s security agencies: how to protect the country’s borders and sustain improvements in public safety when more than 300 unauthorised crossing points exist alongside just 48 approved entry routes.
