Ghana’s Readiness to Combat Terrorism: Strategies of Security Institutions

Abstract

Despite Ghana’s non-experience of terrorism amid the internal and external threats, scholars are yet to push this subject into the realm of discourse. Canvasing exclusive knowledge from institutional practices, we investigated the counter-terrorism strategies employed by Ghana’s security institutions to safeguard the country. Applying thematic textual analysis via interviews from twelve security personnel availed to us, we unmasked that although the diverse institutions deployed identical strategies for the same purpose, divergencies appeared in their modus operandi and the rationale for deploying such strategies. We uncovered some institutions engaged communities for de-radicalization whereas others employed the same method for the purposes of disarmament. To garner covert intelligence, personnel disguised in civilian appearances take up temporal accommodation in the communities, surreptitiously move around in plain clothes or acted on information from civilians. At border control points, security softwares are deployed for efficient identification of suspected terrorists and for ferreting out concealed goods. To combat new and varying forms of terrorism, inter- and cross-institutional training programs are held intermittently at the domestic and international level to renew knowledge of personnel and machinated at unearthing new trends in terrorism. Institutions have also partnered media houses in an attempt to educate the public, or the media are mildly cautioned on terrorism reportage.