Faure Gnassingbé Calls for Ideological Battle Against Extremism
Thursday, 16 October 2025 18:11 
(Togo First) - Togo’s Council President, Faure Gnassingbé, called for a unified, well-funded global strategy to tackle the expanding security crises in West Africa, arguing that security must be treated as a global public good. Gnassingbé presented his proposals at the Aqaba Process Summit in Rome on Wednesday, October 15.
He warned that the spread of terrorism from Sahelian strongholds into coastal states, alongside the reconfiguration of criminal networks reaching the Gulf of Guinea maritime routes, now threatens regional and, ultimately, international stability.
"The security of West Africa is no longer a strictly regional issue: it intersects with our sovereignties, our economies, and our societies," Gnassingbé stated. "We must confront this challenge together. Armed groups cross borders freely, and trafficking fuels global networks."
Gnassingbé highlighted the subregion’s lack of human, technological, and logistical resources, arguing that the security challenge requires a complete change in how funding is managed.
"It is time to act on these realities, including how countries access security financing. Today, we can only fund our security by taking on more debt," he lamented.
He called for security spending to be recognized as a genuine investment, "just like a dam or a school," to avoid "penalizing peace in the name of short-term orthodoxy."
Insisting on a comprehensive approach, Gnassingbé stressed that combating extremism cannot be solely military. It must also integrate educational, social, and informational components. "You do not win a war of minds solely with guns. The battle is primarily fought on the information front," he said. "Terrorist groups exploit the flaws in our physical and digital systems. Our responses must therefore be collective and coordinated."
The President concluded by calling for strategic anticipation over the reactive management of successive crises. "Our action must shift from reaction to anticipation, with predictable resources, not merely ad hoc support," he said. "The response must also be cultural, social, and educational, because security and development are two sides of the same coin."
The Aqaba Process, launched in 2015 by Jordan and Italy, aims to strengthen international security cooperation.
Esaïe Edoh
