The National Peace Council has called on civilians and security agencies to deepen trust and information sharing to strengthen security and facilitate an early response to emerging threats in border communities.

Mr Damien Asobayire, the Upper East Regional Executive Secretary of the National Peace Council, made the call during a civilian-security dialogue organised for residents of Kongo and Nagaamni communities in the Tempane District.

The engagement formed part of the Governance, Rule of Law and Peacebuilding for Sustainable Development Project, being implemented by the National Peace Council and funded by the governments of Denmark, Luxembourg and the Republic of South Korea through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The dialogue, which brought together 200 participants and security officials from the Ghana Police Service, Ghana Immigration Service, Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority and the Bureau of National Intelligence, aimed at addressing mistrust between residents and security agencies and improving collaboration in the detection and reporting of early warning signs.

As part of the project, the National Peace Council also donated two motorbikes to the Ghana Immigration Service and one motorbike to the Ghana Police Service to facilitate their operations.

Mr Asobayire said previous engagements with the two communities had revealed mistrust between civilians and security personnel, which affected the timely reporting of security threats.

“At the end, what we need the civilians and security agencies to do is to build trust so that they can collaborate and respond swiftly to emerging threats,” he stated

Mr Asobayire said the project had also identified inadequate of transportation as a major challenge confronting security agency in responding quickly to reports from communities, hence the donation of the motorbikes to facilitate the security operations.

Deputy Superintendent of Immigration, Alhassan Abdul Rauf, the Operations Commander of the Ghana Immigration Service at Tempane, said the Service was mandated to facilitate the movement of people in and out of the country, but its effectiveness depended largely on cooperation from civilians, particularly because of the porous nature of the borders.

He described the killing of an immigration officer at Nagaamni as a major setback and demoralising to personnel and urged residents to cooperate with the security agencies to identify and apprehend the perpetrators.

He said such cooperation would not only ensure justice but also help prevent attacks on security officers and boost their morale to perform their duties.

DSI Abdul Rauf commended the Peace Council, UNDP and its donors for the donation, noting that the motorbikes would enhance patrols and rapid response, particularly in communities such as Mamburi, where there were no permanently stationed officers.

Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Victor Gakpey, the Garu District Police Commander, said information sharing and trust between civilians and security agencies were critical to combating crime.

He urged residents to provide timely information on suspicious activities and support lawful interventions by the security agencies.

Mr Christopher Kanwelbal, the Customs Commander at Missiga, urged residents to resist attempts to facilitate the movement of illicit goods and support customs officials in tracking and controlling goods to enhance government revenue for development.

Ms Elizabeth Amadu, a participant, described the engagement as an eye-opener, saying it had changed her perception about the payment of customs duties.

Mr Ali Nagban, the Assembly Member for the Nagaamni Electoral Area, said the community was ready to support the security agencies and commended the Peace Council and its partners for their efforts to promote peace and security in the area.