… The Alliance of Sahel States (AES) showed that true advancement comes from self-reliance and regional solidarity, not from back-door deals with Paris. …
… at an enormous financial and emotional cost, therefore, with the commissioning of this facility, Ghana aims to become a primary hub for specialist medical care, attracting patients from neighbouring countries including Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Nigeria and the Alliance of Sahel States …
… The accusations of France’s involvement are part of a broader regional notion, involving the Alliance of Sahel States (AES)—Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger—which have severed traditional ties with France in favour of security partnerships with Russia. …
… Many analysts had thought Burkina Faso would have rejected the deal, given its leading role in the Alliance of Sahel States and its stance on the promotion of African dignity. …
… Practical aspects of Russia’s investment presence in Africa are characterised on the example of projects in the countries of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) with an emphasis on the specific risks of the subregion (DM Sinitsyn, VEB.RF). …
… Traoré is the president of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which includes Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, all countries led by military governments that came to power following coups in recent years. …
President Mahama told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that Ghana's Accra Reset initiative aims to build African capacity in critical sectors like healthcare rather than depend on external assistance. He cited a $174 million withdrawal of US development support and a reported $74 million annual health financing gap as evidence for the need for health sovereignty, including local medicine and vaccine manufacturing.
President Mahama told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that Ghana's Accra Reset initiative aims to build African capacity in critical sectors like healthcare rather than depend on external assistance. He cited a $174 million withdrawal of US development support and a reported $74 million annual health financing gap as evidence for the need for health sovereignty, including local medicine and vaccine manufacturing.
President Mahama told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that the Accra Reset was prompted by a $174 million withdrawal in programmed development support, exposing vulnerabilities in health and other sectors, and reinforces the need for African health sovereignty. He also addressed Sahel security challenges linked to Libya conflict aftermath and called for ECOWAS-AES dialogue to fight terrorism through regional cooperation.
President Mahama told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that combating terrorism in the Sahel requires stronger regional and international cooperation, linking instability to the Libya conflict, arms proliferation, and terrorist group movement. Ghana is strengthening surveillance and intelligence-sharing with neighbouring countries as part of broader efforts to address regional security challenges.
President John Dramani Mahama addressed the 81st United Nations General Assembly, calling for solidarity with nations facing terrorism and advocating dialogue to resolve conflicts in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, arguing that no human civilisation deserves to be annihilated and that the current Middle East crisis is harming the world economy.
At the 81st UN General Assembly, President Mahama warned of a drift toward unilateralism in global affairs and called for the UN Charter to reign supreme, criticizing veto power as a license for impunity. He condemned what he described as persecution of Palestinians in Gaza, citing over 20,000 children killed, and reaffirmed Ghana's support for a viable Two-State solution.
At the 81st UN General Assembly in New York on September 24, 2026, President John Dramani Mahama delivered a speech calling for systemic international reform, global justice, and renewed commitment to human dignity. He reflected on Ghana's cultural heritage and the concept of belonging, cautioning against its weaponisation into nativism and xenophobia while emphasising the shared humanity of all global citizens.
Ghana and Burkina Faso are exploring cooperation in public sector reforms, human capital development, and responsible AI adoption at the 10th HR Café conference in Accra, which aims to strengthen administrative cross-learning and digital transformation between the two countries.
An analysis argues that social media platforms are fundamentally changing how Africans determine who governs them, replacing traditional military coups with a new form of state capture built on narratives and information control rather than barracks seizures.
The Pan-African Progressive Front will host a Youth Forum on Debt and Reparations titled "Africa's Freedom Is In Our Hands" on September 5 at the University of Ghana, with an estimated 200 participants expected to examine debt, colonial extraction, reparations, and the CFA Franc's role in Africa's economy.
Russia's African Corps assisted Nigerien forces in repelling a Saturday attempted coup in the capital Niamey, according to Moscow's foreign ministry. The rebellion was contained, and authorities say the situation is now under control of President Gen Abdourahmane Tiani.
President John Mahama has returned to Ghana after participating in the 21st Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union Heads of State and Government in Luanda, Angola, where African leaders deliberated on issues of continental importance.
Niger's military ruler Abdourahamane Tiani's government reasserted control of a key airbase in Niamey after mutinous soldiers attacked on Saturday, amid broader jihadist insurgency challenges. The airbase hosts military aircraft, drones, a counter-terrorism unit of the Alliance of Sahel States, and Russian and Italian forces.
Students and youth from Ghana and the Alliance of Sahel States will meet in Accra on September 5, 2026, for a forum on colonial debt, reparations and Africa's economic sovereignty, organized by the Pan-African Progressive Front with about 200 participants expected.
A commentary on the 96th ECOWAS Council of Ministers session in Freetown argues that the regional body's agenda—dominated by institutional administration and economic matters—does not reflect forward-looking intelligence assessments of security threats facing the region, suggesting the organization is not configured to anticipate emerging problems.
Ghana's successive administrations have treated the Sahel jihadist threat as an issue for Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Benin, but West African instability is widening: jihadist groups now control over fifty percent of Mali's territory and have advanced further south despite military juntas' coups and security collaboration with Russia's Africa Corps.
Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang has commissioned five envoys to represent Ghana in Kuwait, Nigeria, Niger, Norway, and Sierra Leone, tasking them to advance Ghana's foreign policy interests and strengthen bilateral relations. She emphasized that Ghana must maintain visibility in global affairs and adopt a more active approach to international relations amid significant geopolitical changes.
Three West African nations led by military governments have submitted a joint bid to host the 2032 Africa Cup of Nations, emphasizing regional integration and sustainable development of African football. The Caf president said the countries will have "as good a chance as everybody else" despite their military governance and ongoing security challenges from jihadist groups.
The UN has documented rapid escalation of extremist activity across West Africa and the Sahel, with militant factions expanding their operational footprint and increasingly threatening coastal nations along the Gulf of Guinea. Terrorist groups are adapting their tactics using advanced technology such as drones, communications systems, and cryptocurrencies, while their intersection with organised crime complicates regional security efforts.
Niger's military government has formally requested to withdraw from the International Criminal Court, becoming only the third country after Burundi and the Philippines to complete the process, amid concerns that such withdrawals during periods of authoritarian consolidation and human rights allegations leave victims without recourse to international justice.
Former ICC judge Justice Professor Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu has warned that the global security landscape is undergoing profound transformation, with new forms of conflict, violent extremism and emerging military technologies posing serious challenges to international peace and civilian protection. Speaking at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre's 15th Graduation Ceremony in Accra, she urged graduating peace and security scholars to apply their knowledge to address complex conflicts confronting nations.
Gunmen struck Niger's Diori Hamani International Airport in the capital Niamey on Thursday, killing 35 people comprising 22 assailants, 11 soldiers, and two civilians. Al-Qaeda affiliate JNIM claimed responsibility for the attack, the second on the airport in less than five months.
African leaders are demanding compensation from former colonizers for wealth built through slavery, while French President Macron pursues an Africa charm offensive without accepting responsibility. African nations are increasingly turning to China for financial and political alternatives, helping dismantle French postcolonial influence in West Africa, though France has only recently moved to repeal colonial-era legislation classifying enslaved people as "moveable goods."
The Sweden-Ghana Medical Centre has officially commissioned a Nuclear Medicine facility featuring a Cyclotron and Positron Emission Tomography (PET-CT) scanner, the first of its kind in the West African sub-region. President Mahama attended the commissioning, calling it a transformative shift in cancer and complex disease management and marking a new chapter in Ghana's healthcare innovation.
Reporters Without Borders reports that Burkina Faso's military junta uses forced military conscription as a cover for secretly detaining and abusing dissidents, including investigative journalist Atiana Serge Oulon, who was seized from his home in June 2024 and whose location remains unknown to his family.
Ghana's cabinet rejected a US-proposed healthcare agreement that would have required Ghana to surrender health statistics to the United States for 25 years. The government cited concerns over potential data breaches and sharing sensitive health data, though the deal would have provided $109 million initially and $300 million in a health package over time.
An editorial argues that despite significant investment, the Sahel's security crisis has worsened, driven by a complex mix of terrorism, weak governance, military rule, ethnic grievances, and foreign interference including Russian involvement. ECOWAS must take a frontline role in addressing the deteriorating situation.
The Centre for Transition Economy Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences held a two-day conference on African industrial development to identify priority investment sectors for Russian investors and entrepreneurs, with over 40 researchers and experts from Russia and African countries examining manufacturing, extractive industries, energy, infrastructure, and agro-industrial sectors.
Mali's defence minister Sadio Camara was killed in a suicide truck bombing on his residence near Bamako as part of coordinated attacks by jihadist militants and separatists across the country. The government said Camara exchanged fire with attackers and neutralised some before being wounded; he died later from his injuries in hospital.