John Mahama named as chairman of TANA

Former Ghanaian President John Mahama has been named as Chair of the TANA High-Level Forum on Security in Africa.

John Mahama took over the Chairmanship position from ex-Nigerian president, Olusegun Obasanjo,
Ethiopia-based TANA Forum is a platform for African leaders, stakeholders and thought leaders to collaboratively engage in exploring and exchanging ideas on African-led solutions to its security challenges.

The Forum was launched in 2012 and is actively supported by the Ethiopian Government as an African-owned initiative to explore solutions by Africans for the continents security challenges.

John Mahama’s new role as Chairman of TANA Forum comes days after he delivered a lecture on ‘Self-Reliance In Africa’s Security Sector’ at the Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia at the 7th TANA High-level Forum on Peace and Security in Africa which started on April 21, 2018 and themed: “Ownership of Africa’s Peace and Security Provision: Financing and Reform of the African Union.”

his speech, he stressed that academic institutions and not-for-profit organizations as a whole “should contribute towards the realization of self-reliance both in terms of clarity of ideas and concreteness of policies.”
“It goes without saying that the purpose of academic institutions is research, teaching, and rendering services to the community. As hubs of research and innovation, academic institutions must contribute to the attainment of self-reliance by refining and concretize the notion and relevance of self-reliance itself in the areas of peace, security, and governance,” he added.

He also held that “the greatest threat to Africa’s peace and security” is the rapid rate of population growth.
“This should be of serious concern, considering that the population of Africa is growing faster than all the other continents. It is estimated that nearly 60% of the world’s growth will occur on our continent by the year 2050. Africa’s unbridled population growth is likened to a slowing train, it will cover some distance before it finally comes to a stop. While fertility rates and birth rates are falling in many countries, it will take a while before Africa’s population growth is brought under control.”