The long-standing conflict in Bawku appears to be getting out of hand again. This time around, three students from two Senior High Schools have been caught in the crosshairs of the conflict.
On Saturday, July 26, 2025, a student of the Bawku Senior High School was dragged out of his dormitory and shot dead by assailants. It is believed the attack is connected to the rising tensions in Bawku and its long-standing conflict.
A related event involves another shooting at the Nalerigu Senior High School, where two male students were also shot dead on the evening of Saturday, July 26, 2025, while in their dormitories.
READ ALSO:
Both events are reportedly linked to the Bawku conflict.
Government’s response
On Sunday, the Minister of Government Communication, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, released two statements on the issue.
The first statement indicated soldiers have been deployed to fight the crisis in Bawku. This would not be the first time the Ghanaian Army has been deployed to Bawku to contain the conflict.
The Interior Ministry has also reviewed the curfew hours for the Bawku Municipality and its environs, effective Sunday, July 27, 2025, from 2:00 pm to 6:00 am, and until further notice.
The Asante King, Otumfuo Osei Tutu, is also mediating the conflict. According to the government statement, the talks have far advanced.
“The Otumfuo mediation, with the genuine help of Nayiri and Zugraana, had almost brought finality to the conflict until the very recent killings, which have necessitated drastic actions to protect all in the interest of the greater good,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, in the schools where the students were fatally shot, authorities have announced a closure, and an evacuation is underway, the government has said.
Efforts underway to evacuate students in Bawku,Nalerigu and environs. pic.twitter.com/UCloTH8HGF
— Felix Kwakye Ofosu (@FelixKwakyeOfo1) July 27, 2025
Why is there unrest in Bawku?
The Bawku conflict dates back hundreds of years over a chieftaincy disagreement between the Kusasi and the Mamprisi in the Upper East Region.
“Both the Kusasi and the Mamprusi claim allodial ownership of Bawku, claims which are shrouded in their narrative histories of origin and derived from claims of autochthony,” a 2014 paper on the Kusasi-Mamprusi Conflict in Bawku said.
These tensions have, for years, affected economic and social activity within the Bawku area, and governments over the years have failed to resolve any of it.