The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, is meeting with the Kusaug Traditional Council today at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi, in a renewed push to mediate the long-standing chieftaincy conflict in Bawku, in Ghana’s Upper East Region.
The meeting, announced in a statement from the Manhyia Palace on Sunday, is part of a series of behind-the-scenes efforts led by the Asante monarch to resolve tensions between the Mamprusi and Kusasi ethnic groups. The two factions have been locked in a bitter dispute over traditional succession for decades, with the conflict intensifying in recent years.
“This engagement is a continuation of His Majesty’s peace-building initiative to bring lasting stability to Bawku,” the statement noted, urging all stakeholders to lend their support to the process.
Today’s session is expected to lay the groundwork for further dialogue with the Mamprusi leadership, as Otumfuo deepens his consultative approach to address the root causes of the dispute.
In April 2025, Otumfuo convened a landmark closed-door mediation session at the Manhyia Palace, attended by representatives of both the Kusasi and Mamprusi sides. That three-day meeting, held under tight security, was the first in years to bring both sides to the same table, including the presence of the Bawku Naba, Abugrago Azoka II.
The peace initiative has received broad backing from national leaders and civil society organizations. Former President John Dramani Mahama, during a recent meeting at Jubilee House, praised Otumfuo’s intervention and likened it to his successful role in the Dagbon peace process.
Meanwhile, security conditions in Bawku remain tense. A night-time curfew and a ban on arms possession are still in force, while the military has maintained a strong presence in the area following a series of deadly attacks on security personnel earlier this year.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, security operations in Bawku are being reinforced with intelligence-led disarmament efforts.
The Bawku conflict, whose origins trace back to colonial-era chieftaincy arrangements, has over the years evolved into one of Ghana’s most intractable ethnic and traditional disputes. The violence has claimed numerous lives and displaced hundreds, with periodic outbreaks involving gunfire, arson, and road ambushes.
Today’s dialogue between Otumfuo and the Kusaug chiefs represents a significant step in a delicate but determined peace process—one that many observers hope will eventually bring sustainable calm to the troubled municipality.
