The event also marked the official launch of CDD-Ghana’s International Desk
Ambassador Larry Gbevlo-Lartey, Ghana’s Special Envoy to the Alliance of Sahel States, has urged West African countries to strengthen their capacity to engage diverse international partners without falling captive to singular foreign agendas.
He made this call during a two-day regional convening held in Accra on April 24, 2025, organized by the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), under the theme: “Foreign Powers, Interests and Impacts in West and Central Africa.”
The event also marked the official launch of CDD-Ghana’s International Desk, a new initiative designed to examine and respond to the growing influence of foreign powers on African politics, security, economies, and democratic systems.
Ambassador Gbevlo-Lartey emphasized that the sub-region’s security and development interests have become targets of global competition, often disguised as partnerships.
“West African nations must develop the capacity and indeed be left alone to engage multiple international partners without becoming captured by any single foreign agenda,” he stated.
He stressed the need for external actors to respect the sovereignty of African nations and to support homegrown democratic structures.
According to him, some foreign powers are actively undermining governance and economic resilience in West Africa for their own geopolitical advantage.
“This requires cooperation and coordination that ensure common democratic governance standards and regional economic resilience—principles that, unfortunately, some of our partners deliberately seek to weaken,” he added.
The conference brought together civil society leaders, security experts, policy actors, and development practitioners from across the region to examine foreign influence, particularly in light of democratic backsliding, economic vulnerability, and security threats.
Also addressing the gathering, Dr. Abdel-Fatau Musah, ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, warned that terrorism has become the most urgent existential threat to West Africa.
“Terrorism is by far the immediate and present existential threat to West Africa,” he stated.
Dr. Musah noted that groups affiliated with Al-Qaida and the Islamic State have evolved beyond sporadic attacks, now mimicking state functions—including the control of territory, illegal economic activities such as mining and taxation, and the formation of armed militias.
“The affiliates aim to run an economy, operate an army, and propagate culture albeit a perverted version of Islam,” he cautioned.
He added that the region’s weak state institutions, fragile governance, and shifting global power dynamics have enabled extremist groups such as ISGS, JNIM, and Al-Shabab to entrench themselves with unprecedented levels of sophistication and territorial ambition.
Dr. Musah stressed the urgency of collective action: “This asymmetric conflict environment could worsen if not urgently and strategically addressed. It’s no longer just about terrorism it’s about the survival of our states.”
The newly launched CDD-Ghana International Desk aims to provide research-based insights, policy analysis, and advocacy on the role of foreign influence in West and Central Africa.
It will serve as a regional hub for civil society, academia, the media, and government actors to collaborate and share resources.
Dr. Kojo Pumpuni Asante, CDD-Ghana’s Director of Policy Engagement and Partnerships, described the desk as a long-overdue response to shifting global dynamics affecting African states.
“This desk allows us to deliberate on the changing geopolitics in the sub-region and to respond in ways that ensure citizens truly benefit from global trends,” Dr. Asante said.
The desk will also support student research, policy development, and cross-border collaboration to help African actors respond effectively to foreign engagements and to promote sovereignty, democracy, and sustainable development.
AM/KA
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