Asankragwa: Bishop Emmanuel Botwey, the Chairman of the Western Regional Peace Council, has urged community leaders, chiefs, assembly members, company representatives, and residents to establish strong relationships of trust and collaboration to prevent conflicts in their resource-rich areas.
According to Ghana News Agency, Bishop Botwey delivered the keynote address at the forum themed 'Building Bridges Before the Storm' in Asankragwa, organized by the Regional Peace Council. He emphasized that the Western Region's abundant resources, including gold, timber, oil, bauxite, and fertile lands, could become a curse if grievances are not addressed.
"The storm does not announce itself with thunder only; it creeps in through grievances left unaddressed, unkept promises, and silenced voices," he stated. "Our task here is to build the bridges while the sky is still clear, so that when the winds rise, the structures we have erected together will hold," the Bishop added.
He highlighted past disputes over land compensation, environmental degradation, youth unemployment, and unequal benefit-sharing, urging participants to act as the 'true architects of peace,' with the Peace Council facilitating the creation of safe spaces for dialogue and home-grown solutions.
The Chairman outlined four practical pillars for strengthening peace: early warning and response systems, community-based monitoring committees, transparent grievance mechanisms, and regular town-hall dialogues to detect tensions early.
He also emphasized the need for inclusive and transparent benefit-sharing, community participation in negotiations, publicly displayed memoranda of understanding, and representation for youth and women.
Bishop Botwey cited the importance of alternative livelihoods and youth empowerment through investments in skills training, agro-processing, eco-tourism, and small enterprises as key to reducing frustration and illegal mining activities within communities.
He further called for concrete commitments, quarterly accountability forums by companies and government agencies, and partnerships with the Peace Council as steps towards promoting peaceful coexistence.
Dr. Ebenezer Ashun from UMAT highlighted the need for Ghana to learn from the stringent environmental laws, community-led monitoring, and transition frameworks of Peru, Mongolia, and Australia.
Mr. Stephen Sarfo Amoah, the Acting Executive Secretary of the Regional Peace Council, noted existing conflicts between farmers and illegal miners, government task forces, youth frustration, resistance movements, and tensions between legal companies and locals over compensation, emphasizing the need for research and resolution.
The forum brought together stakeholders from resource communities to foster unity amid ongoing challenges like illegal mining and environmental concerns in the Western Region.