Security consultant and professor at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), Prof. Kwesi Aning, has raised serious concerns about Ghana’s failure to issue any formal travel advisory for traders who regularly cross into Burkina Faso — even as the country descends deeper into terrorist violence.
His comments come in the immediate aftermath of a deadly terrorist attack on Ghanaian tomato traders near Titao, a town in northern Burkina Faso, on Saturday, February 14, 2026 — Valentine’s Day.
Speaking on the AM Show on Tuesday, Prof. Aning said he had asked a producer to verify whether any Ghanaian institution — the Foreign Ministry, the Ghana Road Transport Union, or even the Tomato Sellers Association — had issued a warning to traders travelling to Burkina Faso, Mali, or Algeria.
His findings were troubling: none had.
“When a state fails its people at their critical point of need, words of sympathy almost don’t mean anything,” Prof. Aning said bluntly.
“For our people to voluntarily travel to a war zone in search of livelihood — I just tell a dramatic story.”
According to Interior Minister Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, who spoke on JoyNews on Monday, the traders were in Titao when jihadists attacked, specifically targeting the men. Among those on one truck were ten men, including the driver, and eight women. Seven men were killed and three others were seriously injured. Some women were affected but not seriously injured.
The President of the Ghana National Tomatoes Transporters and Sellers Association, Eric Tuffuor, confirmed that eleven men had been killed in the attack. He gave chilling details of how the attackers shot the men on sight, kidnapped some of the women, and then set the truck on fire, burning everything to ashes.
Interior Minister Muntaka described how the attack unfolded, saying: “The attackers forced the women off the trucks and opened fire indiscriminately. Several individuals, including the drivers, died instantly, and the trucks were set ablaze, leaving the bodies burnt beyond recognition.”
Prof. Aning called on the Foreign Ministry and relevant trade unions to urgently put in place formal travel advisories and coordinated safety protocols for Ghanaians who trade in the Sahel — before more families are left to mourn.
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Source: www.myjoyonline.com
