By Favour Ulebor
Nigeria and Ghana have pledged closer cooperation to address the growing cases of Afrophobic protests and attacks against African nationals, agreeing to seek the inclusion of the issue on the agenda of the next African Union Summit.
The agreement was contained in a statement issued on Saturday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and signed by its Spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, following a bilateral meeting between Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, and Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, on the sidelines of the ongoing ECOWAS Mid-Year Summit in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
The ministers expressed deep concern over the recent Afrophobic protests and attacks targeting African nationals in South Africa, noting that such incidents undermine African unity, regional integration and the free movement of persons across the continent.
They condemned xenophobia, Afrophobia, intolerance and violence against fellow Africans, stressing that such acts are contrary to the ideals of Pan-Africanism and the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area, AfCFTA.
They also called for coordinated regional and continental action to address the root causes of the tensions, protect the lives and dignity of African migrants and promote peaceful coexistence among African communities.
The ministers stressed that criminals among migrant populations should be dealt with in accordance with the rule of law and not be subjected to violence or mob attacks that often affect innocent and law-abiding African citizens.
They further agreed to work closely to ensure that Afrophobia is placed on the agenda of the next African Union Summit and to collaborate with other member states in advocating stronger mechanisms within the African Union, including enhanced monitoring, early warning systems and preventive diplomacy.
During the meeting, Enikanolaiye commended Ghana for championing Pan-Africanism and reparations for Africa and people of African descent over the historical injustices of the trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and colonialism.
He also congratulated Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama on the landmark United Nations resolution on the Transatlantic Slave Trade and the successful hosting of the Next Steps High-Level Conference on the issue, reaffirming Nigeria’s support for the conference’s decisions on reparative justice.
Ablakwa congratulated Enikanolaiye on his recent appointment and called for closer collaboration between both countries through action-oriented preventive diplomacy.
He also appreciated Nigeria’s support for the landmark UN resolution on the Transatlantic Slave Trade and acknowledged the contributions of the Nigerian delegation to the High-Level Conference on reparative justice.
Both ministers reaffirmed the long-standing ties between Nigeria and Ghana and pledged to continue working together within ECOWAS, the African Union and other multilateral platforms to promote a more peaceful, inclusive and prosperous Africa.
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