Tema, Feb 25, GNA - The Executive Director of West Africa Network for Peace-building (WANEP), Mr Emmanuel Bomdande, has called for a proactive and preventive oriented approach to sustain the peace in Ghana. He said that is the best approach rather than being reactive in managing national security as well as responding to intra and inter communal conflicts and violence.

Mr Bombande said emphasis needed to be put on dealing with the root causes and the underlying issues of conflicts rather than managing the symptoms by enforcing peace.

He said this at a talk on "World understanding and peace day" organized by the Rotary Club of Tema and Tema Meridian last night at Tema to mark its 100 anniversary that fell on the February 23. "In order to shift from reaction to prevention of conflicts there is the need to build capacity for a good analysis and understanding of conflicts in Ghana that threaten peace and stability." Mr Bomdande called for full understanding of violent conflicts before they could be solved since it is not possible to achieve success if there is no understanding.

"It is for this reason that establishing a peace-building unit at the Ministry of Interior is indeed an excellent idea because it will enable state actors to work in better partnership and coordination with civil society actors to sustain peace in Ghana". He said sustenance of peace must be seen as a long-term investment that must be tackled from the foundation with concerted efforts of all actors to ensure total success.

Dr Emmanuel Akwetey, Executive Director of the Institute for Democratic and Economic Governance, stressed the importance of mediation by knowledgeable recognized institutions in conflicts before they escalate.

Talking on the way forward after the passage of the Representation of the Peoples Amendment Bill (ROPAB) he impressed upon all political parties to come together and mediate as a way of diffusing tension to move the nation forward.

Once the bill is passed, Mr Akwetey called on all Ghanaians to actively participate in public debate about the electoral process on the issue to the satisfaction of all and not to leave the workload on the Election Commission alone.

Mr Sam Okudzeto, Past Rotarian International Director, called for dialogue in conflict resolution and to respect each other's views to bring peace. 25 Feb 06